Nigeria’s indigenous airline operator, Air Peace, has suffered a legal setback in its battle to stop the Federal Government through the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) from investigating complaints over alleged exploitative airfare pricing, as the Abuja Federal High Court affirmed the agency’s authority to probe consumer grievances involving airline ticket prices.
It dismissed the airline’s suit and held that the FCCPC acted within its statutory powers under the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA), 2018, when it sought information from the airline following public complaints over sharp increases in domestic airfares.
The ruling came as a fresh blow to Air Peace, which had argued that the Commission could not inquire into airfare pricing unless the President had first invoked the price regulation provisions of the Act.
Air Peace had asked the court to declare that the FCCPC lacked authority to investigate the matter and to restrain it permanently from doing so.
But the court, in the ruling delivered by Justice B.F.M. Nyako rejected those claims, ruling that the Commission’s investigative powers are separate from any power to regulate prices.
Nyako, in a Certified True Copy of the judgment delivered on June 29 but disclosed on Friday, held that the FCCPC was within its rights to request information from Air Peace in response to consumer complaints, describing the action as a lawful investigation rather than price control.
The court further stated that the Commission did not direct the airline to reduce its fares, set a pricing formula, impose any price or declare the fares unlawful.
It held that accepting Air Peace’s interpretation would amount to tying the hands of the regulator and preventing it from investigating legitimate consumer complaints unless the President had already activated Section 88 of the FCCPA. Such a position, the court said, would defeat the purpose of the law and weaken the Commission’s mandate whenever pricing concerns arise.
The latest decision is consistent with an earlier ruling in April 2026 by Justice James Omotosho, who also dismissed another suit filed by Air Peace challenging the FCCPC’s power to investigate consumer complaints and issue summons in the course of carrying out its statutory responsibilities.
Reacting to the judgment on Friday, the Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the FCCPC, Tunji Bello, described the ruling as an important judicial affirmation of the Commission’s responsibility to investigate market conduct where there are reasonable grounds to believe consumers or competition may be adversely affected.
Bello said the court had once again drawn a clear distinction between investigating a complaint and regulating a price, stressing that the Commission had neither fixed nor regulated Air Peace’s fares, but only exercised its lawful power to gather facts in response to consumer concern.
“An investigation is a fact-finding process. It is neither a finding of liability nor an enforcement action,” Bello said, adding that every responsible regulator must be able to inquire into credible complaints affecting consumers and markets without such action being mistaken for price regulation.
In a statement released by the FCCPC spikesperson, Ondaje Ijagwu, the Commission boss said the judgment has provided legal clarity on the scope of the Commission’s powers, while reaffirming that price regulation remains subject to a separate legal framework under the FCCPA.
Bello also restated the Commission’s commitment to fairness, transparency and strict observance of the rule of law in carrying out its mandate.