KFC Nigeria sorry after denying service to wheelchair user service
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.
In a long thread, 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,
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 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 Adebola.
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