Hijack ’93 (2024) is Netflix’s Nollywood dramatisation of the real-life 1993 Nigerian Airways hijacking. The film opens in a secret rally led by Mallam Jerry (Sam Dede), head of the Movement for the Advancement of Democracy (MAD). He impassionedly recruits four impressionable young men, Omar “Skipper” (Nnamdi Agbo), Kayode “Eruku”(Adam Garba), Ben-Owiwi (Allison Emmanuel), and Dayo “Iku” (Oluwaseyi Akinsola) for what he describes as a life-or-death mission to reignite democracy and overthrow Nigeria’s military government.
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On October 25, 1993, the four boarded a Nigerian Airways Airbus A310 flying from Lagos to Abuja. Unbeknownst to normal passengers, one of the hijackers stashes a pistol (and even gasoline) in the plane’s lavatory, smuggled aboard with inside help. Shortly after takeoff, the teens reveal themselves, brandishing weapons and threatening violence. They claim to represent MAD and make a chilling announcement: “Ladies and gentlemen… we demand an end to an oppressive regime… and the reinstatement of our democratically elected president within 72 hours.”
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Their original plan was to force a reroute to Frankfurt, Germany, for global attention, but fuel constraints force an unplanned diversion. With dwindling fuel, they perform an emergency landing in Niamey. French-speaking Nigerien authorities surround the aircraft. The hijackers escalate tension by dousing passengers with gasoline and threatening to ignite it.
Nigerian government special forces, led by Captain Kenneth Dokunbo (Bob Manuel Udokwu), arrive to negotiate. They identify a high-value hostage, Lee Zhang, son of the Chinese Vice President, and realize his life could escalate diplomatic fallout. The hijackers release women and children and ask for a journalist to broadcast their message. Meanwhile, internal tensions emerge as Owiwi seems unhinged, threatening execution, while Iku begins questioning the mission.
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As internal trust crumbles, the hijackers, especially Iku, urge negotiation. They propose civilian release in return for Nigerien trial and public coverage .
But Owiwi violently disrupts the plan, shoots the translator and drenches passengers in petrol. Amid disarray, Nigerien special forces, with Nigerian military support, storm the plane after three to four days, leaving an unexpected outcome.
Director: Robert O. Peters
Cast: Nnamdi Agbo, Adam Garba, Allison Emmanuel, Oluwaseyi Akinsola, Sam Dede, Bob Manuel, John Dumelo, Idia Aisien, Nancy Isime, Efa Iwara, and Sharon Ooja
Runtime: 86 minutes
Watch trailer here.
