KFC Nigeria has issued an apology after the airport authority shut one of its outlets over alleged discrimination against a disabled client.
Adebola Daniel, son of a former Nigerian state governor Gbenga Daniel, said in a post on X that he was ordered to leave a KFC outlet at Lagos airport because of his wheelchair.
The post sparked widespread outrage.
It also prompted an investigation by the federal airport authority, ending in the branch’s closure.
In a long thread, Mr Daniel described the incident, which happened on Tuesday, as “the worst sort of public humiliation” he had ever experienced.
“Today I felt less than human, like a guard dog not allowed into the house. Lonely and isolated.”
He alleged that the manager of the KFC outlet at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, Nigeria’s busiest airport, denied him service despite multiple pleas from his wife and two brothers, who were travelling with him.
“She refused to listen to reason and stood her ground that at [KFC] Murtala Muhammed branch, wheelchairs and wheelchair users of all shapes and sizes were not permitted in the premises and we should leave immediately,” he said.
In an audio clip taken after the incident, Mr Daniel’s wife can be heard complaining to a female worker, presumably the manager, that they “could have handled the situation better”.
“When you guys came in, we should have told you guys that wheelchair is not allowed… people know that wheelchair is not allowed [at KFC],” the employee replied, suggesting that the restaurant’s policy barred wheelchair users.
In a post on X on Thursday, KFC Nigeria said sorry to Mr Daniel and announced measures to address the situation, including training its employees on inclusion and empathetic customer service.
“We deeply regret the frustration and distress experienced by our guest and extend sincere apologies to those affected,” it said on X.
The statement followed the restaurant’s closure by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and the authority’s order for KFC to apologise to Mr Adebola.
FAAN has also ordered the fast food chain to display a non-discrimination policy at the restaurant as a condition for reopening.