Anthony Egbowuka, a Lagos resident, made a partial payment of N1 million to AirJara Travels and Tours, owned by Abi Otedola, in 2023 for a Poland work permit, but he never received it.

Egbowuka told FIJ he did not know how to retrieve his N1 million from the travel agency because, despite visiting its physical office several times, he never met anyone there.

He explained that two female staff members of AirJara Travels and Tours told him in 2023, when he visited their Ikoyi office for the first time, that he would have to pay €2,400 in two tranches before they could start his work permit application.

“On August 16, 2023, I paid N1 million into their account with the United Bank for Africa (UBA). They said I would pay the balance of €1,400 when the work permit was ready. In February 2024, AirJara Travels and Tours emailed me, saying that if I wanted to continue the process, I should pay the remaining €1,400,” Egbowuka told FIJ.

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“I did all I could to gather the money. That same month, I went to their office, ready to pay, but didn’t see anyone there. It was locked. I went again, but it was still locked,” Egbowuka said.

The Lagos resident said that while he could have transferred the money to the same account he had previously used, he wanted to visit their office to show how serious he was.

“In an email, they said they were renovating their office. But the baffling thing was that their numbers stopped connecting, and they have remained that way. I still thought they were renovating until I saw an FIJ report that said otherwise. I was there on January 7, but they still weren’t there,” he said.

FIJ emailed Airjara Travels and Tours on Thursday at the same address they had used to respond to a query in January, but the company had not replied at press time.

READ ALSO: Abi Otedola’s AirJara Still With Woman’s N1.4m for Poland Work Permit After 2 Years

A closer look at AirJara’s last email to Egbowuka showed it was dated February 1, 2024.

In the email, AirJara Travels and Tours informed him that they had temporarily halted his Poland work permit process due to the state of the Nigerian economy at the time and the crash of the currency.

“Kindly check Item 7 of your contract, which clarifies issues like this in a country like ours. At the moment, we are trying to do internal restructuring and are not picking up any calls. If you wish to continue and pay the remaining balance, you can pay into the account you used when you applied,” the email reads in part.

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When FIJ checked Item 7 of the contract between both parties, it found that AirJara Travels and Tours and Egbowuka had agreed that if something major happened and prevented either party from meeting their obligations, the deadline to fulfil the contract would be extended until things returned to normal.

If the situation lasted for more than six months, either party could choose to cancel the contract without paying for any losses, as long as both sides agreed.

Egbowuka told FIJ that although AirJara Travels and Tours had made it clear that customers would complete their payments upon collection, when he visited their office in February 2024 to make the full payment — despite not receiving a work permit — no one was there.

February 2024 was the sixth month after his initial N1 million payment.