By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Nigerians wishing to travel with the red-and-blue checked bags called “Ghana Must Go” through Ethiopia Airlines may not do so, following the ban on their flights.
In a statement, Ethiopia Airlines cited the impact of the luggage carriers on the airport equipment as reason for the ban. The bag is seen as favourite of many traders.
According to the airlines, “the frequent occurrence of damages to the conveyor belts at various airports, resulting in significant costs incurred by the airlines involved”.
The luggage got the nickname in Nigeria in the 1980s, when hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants, many of whom were Ghanaians, were asked to leave Nigeria. They were said to have fled with the bags on their backs.
However, the airlines said the bags could be used if they were “adequately packed in a carton or hardcover rectangular container”.
KLM and Air France had in 2017 imposed a ban on the bags, saying they could unravel and clog up baggage delivery systems.
Ethiopia Airlines operates several domestic and regional routes out of Nigeria’s commercial hub, Lagos.
The bags are very popular across Africa, and much of the rest of the world, and can be seen in many airports.
They also go by different names. In Kenya, for example, they are known as Nigeria bags, and Zimbabweans call them Botswana bags.
