Bayelsa Aviation Scholarship Candidate Sues Dr. Eruani Azibapu, Azikel Group for ₦1.9 Billion

*YENAGOA* – Yebei Amabebe, the second successful candidate of the proposed fully funded aviation training sponsored by Bayelsa State business mogul and politician, Dr. Eruani Azibapu, has formally filed a lawsuit at the Bayelsa State High Court against Dr. Eruani Azibapu and the Azikel Group.

The lawsuit, which seeks ₦1.9 billion in damages, marks a significant escalation of the ongoing crisis surrounding the proposed training. It follows allegations and counter-allegations that the programme was a mere make-believe with no real intention of being executed by the sponsors.

It will be recalled that in 2024, the Azikel Group, owned by Dr. Eruani Azibapu, publicly pledged a multi-billion naira scholarship to train the brightest minds in Bayelsa State as commercial pilots up to Airline Transport Pilot Licence, and as aircraft engineers in the United States.

Following a rigorous selection process, Mr. Amabebe and his colleague, Kariyai Daukoru, were the only two candidates to pass the screening examination. However, what was promised as a gateway to an international career allegedly turned into a 16-month period of forced, under-compensated labour within the Azikel hangar.

Mr. Amabebe’s lawsuit alleges a flagrant breach of contract, asserting that the Azikel Group used the promise of elite education as a public relations stunt to recruit cheap labour and boost political image, while allegedly lacking the required legal accreditation, financial capacity, and political will to conduct such training.

The litigation comes at a time when the Azikel Group faces growing scrutiny over its handling of the scholarship programme.

Despite public declarations of partnership with international entities, investigations have since revealed a lack of formal agreements with the organizations cited in the original scholarship advertisement.

Mr. Amabebe’s action at the Bayelsa State High Court underscores a collective resolve to ensure that the intellectual labour of Bayelsa’s youth is not exploited for corporate and personal image-building, and that the original promises made to the state are held to the standard of legal accountability.

According to court documents sighted by our correspondent, in Suit No. BYHC/YHC/CV/386/2026, Mr. Amabebe is praying the court for specific performance of the contract, among other reliefs.

Mr. Amabebe alleges that contrary to claims by Dr. Eruani and the Azikel Group that they were in partnership with relevant authorities and stakeholders, including Emirates Airlines and the United States Embassy, Dr. Eruani never truly intended to train them. Checks with the supposed partners, he said, revealed that Dr. Eruani was never in any partnership with the stakeholders. Mr. Amabebe described the entire training programme as a scam designed to launder the image of Dr. Eruani.

The litigation follows an extensive but failed scholarship programme that claimed to offer international pilot training for Bayelsa youths. The claimant alleges that the promise was fraudulent and led to the exploitation of participants as uncompensated labourers.

The two trainees had earlier petitioned the Bayelsa State House of Assembly, alleging systematic betrayal and prolonged neglect by the Azikel Group. However, the Azikel Group, through its Lead Communications Officer, Austin Ebipade, countered that the trainees were not abandoned, but were undergoing in-house, salary-paid probation in a conducive environment.

Mr. Kariyai, who had earlier sued Dr. Eruani in Suit No. BYHC/YHC/CV/46/2026, is currently being remanded at Kuje Correctional Centre in Abuja following a petition by Dr. Eruani over allegations of cyberbullying and cyberstalking.

“Our client is well aware of the antics of Dr. Eruani in trying to silence them, using state machinery and apparatus at his disposal. Our client is resolved in seeking justice and in ensuring that the almost two years of his life, which have been wasted in relying on a promise built on make-believe, are compensated for,” counsel stated.

“Mr. Amabebe remains steadfast in his pursuit of justice through the Nigerian judicial system, seeking a resolution that addresses the breach of contract and the severe professional and personal damages suffered during the tenure of the programme,” said Ferdinand Nta, one of the counsel to Mr. Amabebe.

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