A veteran Nigerian journalist, Mogaji Wole Arisekola, is seeking legal redress over a ₦5.42 million payment made for a Qatar Airways Business Class ticket after the booking was cancelled and the money allegedly remained unavailable to him for months.
Arisekola said he paid ₦5,422,574 on May 27, 2026, for a Lagos-London journey through Doha ahead of his daughter’s graduation ceremony in London on July 15. According to him, the payment was made by bank transfer through Parallex Bank into a Paystack-Titan account provided for the transaction.
The Brandspur Banking News Desk understands from the account provided that the booking carried reference number 7QC34K, while the ticket was assigned number 1047489. Arisekola said the expected ticket was never issued despite repeated efforts to resolve the matter.
He subsequently complained to Parallex Bank, which contacted Paystack regarding the transaction. Arisekola said Paystack confirmed on June 19 that the payment had been successful and settled, but the ticket still was not issued.
The situation became more complicated when Qatar Airways reportedly told him on June 22 that the booking had been cancelled following a payment dispute with the card-issuing bank. Arisekola disputes that explanation, saying he had paid through a bank transfer rather than a card and had never authorised a payment dispute or cancellation.
He also said Parallex Bank had informed Paystack that he had not received the ticket and had not requested that the booking be cancelled.
With his daughter’s graduation approaching, Arisekola said he was forced to make alternative travel arrangements. He eventually bought another ticket on Virgin Atlantic at short notice, incurring more than ₦3 million in additional expenditure.
The prolonged dispute, he said, also affected his ability to make his preferred travel arrangements, including his stated preference to travel First Class.
Arisekola, who is a publisher and has practised journalism for more than four decades, later instructed lawyers to write formally to Paystack and Qatar Airways. The letter, dated September 10, demanded the refund of the ₦5,422,574 and sought clarification over the circumstances surrounding the cancellation.
According to his account, the money was eventually refunded on September 21, four months after the original payment and following the intervention of his lawyers.
Despite receiving the refund, Arisekola said several questions remain unanswered, including who initiated the cancellation, why the booking was cancelled, what happened to the funds after the transaction was confirmed as settled and why the money was not returned promptly.
He has also indicated plans to petition the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority and the Office of the Minister of Aviation, seeking an investigation into the matter and appropriate action against the parties he believes were responsible.
Arisekola’s allegations have not been independently established in the material provided, and the account specifically states that Paystack and Qatar Airways should have an opportunity to respond to the claims.
The dispute now centres not only on the refunded ₦5.42 million, but also on the circumstances surrounding the cancelled booking, the conflicting explanations over the payment and the additional costs the customer says he incurred as a result.
