Headline

Pendulum: The Positive Steps Nigeria Must Take To Develop

Published

5 years ago

June 15, 2019

Editor

By Dele Momodu

Fellow Nigerians, if you are a regular follower and frequent reader of my column, you would, in the past few weeks, have encountered the serialisation of the great lessons’ life has taught me in the last 59 years of inhabiting this planet. But I have decided to take a break from my biographical narration in deference to the recent June 12 celebration as a national holiday and our new Democracy Day in Nigeria replacing May 29 which is now effectively merely Inauguration Day. It is right that June 12 should be Democracy Day given the utmost import of that day in the annals of our democratic history and especially in the realisation and actualisation of democracy that we now call the Fourth Republic. You will therefore understand, and appreciate, in a jiffy why it was expedient for me to write about June 12, although in a sense it is an integral part of my life’s experience.

Let me start by raising a toast to President Muhammadu Buhari on the smart decision to acknowledge the importance and significance of that day Nigerians united to vote for one man without ethnic and religious considerations or colouration. It is also noteworthy, and remarkable, that President Buhari chose to honour some of the notable figures in the struggle for the fulfilment and revalidation of the June 12, 1993, Presidential mandate, which was freely and overwhelmingly given to Chief Moshood Abiola by Nigerians. This is probably the biggest and best goal scored so far by President Buhari since his return to power in 2015. Nothing, and no one, can rob or deprive him of the plaudits and applause that are ascribed to this particularly delightful gesture with pleasure. Thank you, Mr President, from the bottom of my heart. I was and remain overwhelmed by your generosity of spirit particularly because you did not have to do it. Others who had better reasons to do it, spectacularly failed to do so and they were not crucified for it. Instead Nigerians shrugged and moved on. Building on your great spirit of atonement, you have further endeared yourself to me by naming the National Stadium in Abuja after MKO Abiola. What more can one ask of you? As I wrote when the announcement was first made about June 12 becoming Democracy Day, and the actual ceremony came up in the Presidential villa in Abuja, it matters not to me if there were political undertones to these kind and gracious gifts. People will read politics and ulterior motives into anything, but one must always appreciate and celebrate humaness and humanity, and this is one of such occasions. And so, as for me and my house, God used President Buhari to make what seemed impossible possible, and that should suffice for now if not for ever.

Have you noticed how, suddenly everyone is now an apostle of June 12! What is worse is the revisionist history which is being espoused and churned out by several people, mostly in order to cleanse or whitewash themselves because of the nefarious roles that they placed in the truncation of the Dream. Some are mere charlatans who seek to jump on the bandwagon with the hope of feathering their nests. Those who know the truth, know, and it is my fervent hope that before too long we will start seeing accurate memoirs from those who seek nothing more than truth and justice. We owe this to the memory of MKO.

Having said that, let’s now get down to the very serious business of the day. It is not enough celebrating the date June 12 or naming the Abuja National Stadium or any other edifice or institution after Chief Abiola. The spirit of June 12 must also be absorbed and imbibed. That is what can make sense and achieve the desired purpose eventually. Making a fetish, ritual or routine of the date alone is of no substance, if Nigeria and Nigerians have nothing concrete to benefit from it. And what can we gain?

One, Nigeria needs another Abiola, or a fair replica of him or any of our avowed nationalists and patriots that travelled the space called Nigeria before him. I have always maintained that the monumental victory recorded by Abiola on June 12, 1993, was not an accident or a fluke. It was a reward for the phenomenal life of hard work, sacrifice, dedication, generosity and uncommon love for mankind that Abiola demonstrated and evinced. Abiola was not interested in where you came from or what religion you practiced, he was more concerned about your performance and service delivery. Nigeria desperately needs another completely detribalised, secular and worldly man or woman, at the very top of our political stratosphere. On this score, I doubt if Buhari is willing or able to make the substantial effort necessary given his age and antecedents. However, if he tries this second term around, he may still go on to become a global statesman and a leader whose story will be told and retold in Nigerian folklore.

Two, Nigeria requires a leader who knows how to spot talent, like Abiola, and nurture it. Chief Abiola surrounded himself with the best brains in every endeavour that he undertook, be it religion, social life, business, sport or politics. There are too many of such people and space will not permit me to name them individually, but rest assured that in their respective fields, they are like a list of Who is Who. What they also had was diligence and integrity, although some of them later became compromised for a variety of reasons which is not the subject of this discourse. What the Buhari government needs to demonstrate, very glaringly and urgently, is the ability to reward and embrace talent and merit. It must target and bring on board the very best that Nigeria has to offer. Unfortunately, this has not been the case thus far, and it is Nigeria and her people that has suffered badly.

President Buhari must regard and welcome every Nigerian as a part of one big and united family. The biggest problem facing us is the lack of unity and cohesion, borne partly from the suspicion that mediocrity is crowned whilst merit is demoted. This is responsible for the spate of killings all over Nigeria. True love has taken flight and what is left is concentrated bitterness. Chief Abiola felt at home in every nook and cranny of Nigeria and he was welcomed with open arms. There should be a method to our madness. President Buhari should put the past behind and whatever informed his seeming aloofness and nonchalance. Leadership must inspire, it must rouse the people from their deep slumber. What I see in Buhari is a President who has turned taciturnity into an art. This makes it difficult for Nigerians to read his mind or know the direction he is facing. It makes for stilted and struggling nation building and development. It is a recipe for deep stagnation in our social and political life.

Three, Nigeria is a secular State and its secularity should be maintained decidedly and decisively. The tension about religion is borne out of the decision of our leaders to dabble into matters which ordinarily should remain a personal matter between man and his God. Whosoever wants to serve his God fervently should work very hard to raise the funds needed and necessary. Nigeria can no longer afford to waste resources on personal projects that should never be of interest or concern to the State. Our infrastructure deficit is way too high for us to continue our profligate lifestyle. When we de-emphasise matters of religion in State policies, individuals would be encouraged to invest directly in their faith and religion, as they should. Everyone knew Chief Abiola as a devout Muslim, but they also knew him as a liberal who tolerated other religions within his group of companies and could be trusted enough if he makes appointments that seemed lopsided. It was for that singular reason that he was able to get away with the Muslim-Muslim ticket of Abiola and Kingibe, just like he would have done had it been his preferred ticket of Abiola and Atiku. Buhari’s trajectory and seemingly fundamentalist speeches in the past have come back to haunt and dog his every move. A large chunk of Nigerians tends to see him as someone who favours his religion and his tribe above others and who may even go the extra mile to stifle other faiths and tribes. Whereas, on the other hand, Chief Abiola invested in churches and mosques all over the federation with his personal funds and brought people of different tribes and ethnicity into his magic circle.

I vividly remember an encounter between Alhaji Baba Gana Kingibe and I in 1993. Kingibe was the Vice-Presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party. As soon as Chief Abiola returned to Lagos from the Jos Primaries which he won by the whiskers, I was at his house to remind him of his promise to attend the Grand House Reception at Guv’nor Ken Calebs Olumese’s Niteshift, on Opebi Road, Lagos, which was easily the most prestigious nightclub in Lagos at the time. Kola Abiola had whisked his Dad away for a couple of hours’ rest, but Chief Abiola still made it to the club where he mingled and danced with everyone, whether saints or sinners. After that big night, the Guv’nor of Niteshift requested me to help invite Alhaji Kingibe and I went to his house and a deal was sealed. But close to the date, Kingibe developed cold feet and said he wasn’t going to attend again because some members of his faith might misconstrue his motives and motivation and accuse him of interacting with men and women of low morals which could easily get him into trouble. I understood but it was difficult to back out at that stage because the preparations had gone too far. So, I approached Chief Abiola for his intervention and fortunately Alhaji Kingibe was coming to see him. When Kingibe arrived, Chief asked why he would rather disappoint those who wanted to host and honour him. Kingibe expressed his apprehension to Abiola who responded with a powerful salvo, “you are not more Muslim than me, if I can enter the nightclub, there’s no reason you cannot enter…” That did the magic and Kingibe agreed to attend and we all had great fun. And that was one of the things that endeared their joint ticket to those who were not overtly religious. The Abiola/Kingibe disposition would easily douse the kind of volatility of religious conflagration in Nigeria today.

Education is the greatest leveller between the rich and the poor anywhere in the world. Abiola was inspired by his own background and experiences. Had it not been for education, he would never have attained the heights he did. It was education that gave him the exposure he had. To show his appreciation and his understanding of how education could lead to social, economic and political emancipation and integration, Chief Abiola invested heavily in education not only via scholarships to indigent students nationwide but also by contributing to educational infrastructure in all parts of the country. In what was regarded as the biggest single donation ever to higher institutions at the time, Chief Abiola gave out about 30 million Naira to all Nigerian universities. Beyond that, he built libraries for many schools. He also made books available and affordable for students by establishing Abiola Bookshops which became a haven and succour to many students and lecturers. Abiola was committed to devoting a large part of his personal fortune to the education of the people. I am sure that he would have done the same in government by allocating a substantial part of the country’s budget to education. I know that under Abiola the intractable problems between the government and staff of our tertiary institutions would have been a thing of the past. He would have accommodated and provided for them, no matter what.

Abiola knew that food was a critical necessity in everyone’s life and that attracted his attention. He established Abiola Farms in Ogun, Kwara and Taraba States. Long before local rice production became the vogue in Nigeria, he had invested in rice mills and massive silos in Daka. He also owned Banuso Fisheries. His Wonder Bakeries Limited was built to international standards and I was a happy distributor of Wonderloaf at a point in 1991 after I resigned from my celebrated job as Editor of Classique magazine. Just imagine the spiralling effect of Abiola’s investments. He used to tell anyone who cared to listen that only entrepreneurs like him could know how to create employment and job opportunities. Abiola was a serial investor who touched lives everywhere in Nigeria and beyond. In his private life he was already doing the business that he knew public life would demand of him.

It behoves a government determined to successfully govern for its people to demonstrate its preparedness to attain the next level by sincerely nurturing talent, shunning ethnicity and religion, fostering education, engendering food production and promoting job creation. That was Abiola’s way. It is my hope and prayer that Democracy Day will be seen as a day when the nation’s leaders renew their vows to govern for Nigeria in the essence epitomised by our gloriously appointed and anointed leaders such as MKO Abiola.

Democracy Day must not just be celebratory and ceremonial. It must be much more. It must be Liberation Day, with freedom from the shackles of deprivation, poverty, diseases and insecurity of all shades and form.

Headline

Mike Adenuga is Alive, Hale and Hearty, I Just Spoke with Him – Dele Momodu

Published

2 days ago

November 20, 2024

Eric

By Eric Elezuo

Africa’s biggest philanthropist and Chairman, Globacom Group, Dr. Mike Adenuga is Alive, hale and hearty!

This has been confirmed by Chairman, Ovation Media Group, Chief Dele Momodu via his social media handles.

Following rumours, whose source is yet to be ascertained that the man, known for his quantum giving, passed away, Momodu wrote that he had just spoken with the billionaire businessman, who affirmed his health while thanking all for their concern.

“Ignore the fake news…DR MICHAEL ADENIYI AGBOLADE ISOLA ADENUGA is hale and hearty. He is right now at his desk working round the clock in support of the Nigerian economy…He just called me to thank everyone for their concern,” Dele Momodu wrote.

In addition, members of the top echelon of the group have separately confirmed that the one known as The Bull is alive and healthy.

Dr. Adenuga has remained in the forefront of many families happy with his direct financial and material gifts as well as consistent promo from his Glo brand.

Only last night, CNN celebrated 15 years of his sponsorship of the African Voices Changemakers, where he has foe a decade and half been supporting budding African entertainers to reach their professional zenith.

Headline

A Tale of Two Emirs of Kano: Who Blinks First?

Published

3 days ago

November 18, 2024

Eric

By Eric Elezuo

The uneasy calm that reared its ugly head in the ancient city of Kano since May 23, 2024, when Governor Yusuf Kabir sacked the sitting Emir, Aminu Ado Bayero, replacing him with Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, also known as Muhammadu Sanusi II, has yet to abate as the two prominent personalities have consistently laid claim to the emirship of the emirate, and operating from different palaces in the town.

The bitter rivalry between the two royalties has caused division not only in the emirate, but the entire Kano State, and spiraling into national politics, leaving the political parties, especially the New Nigerian Peoples Party, which is the governor’s party, the Presidency, alleged to be giving backing to the immediate past governor, Umar Ganduje, who is also the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and the security agencies, who receive instructions from the Presidency, taking sides.

Sanusi Lamido Sanusi also known as Muhammadu Sanusi II and Aminu Ado Bayero are the parties embroiled in the bitter rivalry in a bid to outwit each other for the exalted Emir of Kano position. This was since Sanusi was reinstated as the 16th Emir, having been dethroned and exiled on March 9, 2020 by the former administration of Abdullahi Umar Ganduje.

Sources close the two notable figures, and the palace told The Boss that it is not unlikely that both men are being supported by powerful entities.

“While Sanusi has the backing of the Kano State government as visibly manifested in the reinstatement process, Ado Bayero is being backed by the Federal Government of Nigeria,” one of the sources said.

The furore has consequently attracted the wrong commentaries from stakeholders within and outside the Kano Emirate, resulting in heated arguments, threats and possibly outbreak of direct and indirect confrontations. But six months into the leadership quagmire, none of the two has shifted ground, or is willing to shift ground as more and more intrigues of power play and desire for recognition continue to be the order of the day.

The ‘two emirs’, who continue to claim legitimacy, have variously been trying to outdo each other in the quest to be relevant in the scheme of things.

The rivalry between the two emirs and their loyalists has resuscitated with weddings and counter weddings.

Just this weekend, a former governor of Kano State, Alhaji Rabiu Kwnakwaso hosted the wedding of his daughter, Dr. Aisha Rabiu Kwankwaso, and her husband, Fahad Dahiru Mangal, at the palace of Emir Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, which attracted prominent national citizens including former President Olusegun Obasanjo and Vice President Kashim Shettima, Waziri Adamawa Atiku Abubakar among others. Fahad is the son of Nigerian business magnate, Dahiru Mangal, founder of MaxAir, one of the country’s leading private airlines.

In what looked like a counter affair, the palace of Aminu Ado Bayero, in Nasarawa Local Government Area of the state, will on December 13, 2024 hosts a double wedding involving Jibrin Barau Jibrin and Aisha Barau Jibrin, the children of the Senate Deputy President, Barau I. Jibrin, to their spouses.

Some stakeholders told The Boss that the whole thing is a case of seeking relevance and originality.

Meanwhile, former Governor Kwankwaso has blamed President Bola Tinubu for the crises that have failed to abate in the state.

While speaking at the convocation ceremony of Skyline University in Kano on Sunday, Kwankwaso accused Tinubu and the political forces from Lagos of attempting to impose their influence on Kano’s leadership, particularly in the selection of the Emir.

“Today, we can see very clearly that there are significant efforts from the Lagos axis to colonise this part of the country. Lagos wouldn’t allow us to choose even our Emir; instead, they want to impose their own Emir on Kano,” he stated.

HOW IT ALL BEGAN…

The Kano State House of Assembly, as widely speculated, repealed the 2019 Law, which was instrumental in removing Sanusi from office, and balkanise the Kano emirate into five jurisdictions.

The Assembly, in the new emirate law stipulated the sack of all the Emirs in the jurisdictions and a restoration of the old order, where only one Emir will be overseeing all of Kano.

As a result, the Governor of Kano State, Abba Yusuf, appended his signature on the bill, giving it the backing of the law, in the presence of the deputy governor, Aminu Abdulsalam, Speaker, Isma’il Falgore, and the SSG, Abdullahi Bichi. and thereafter, proceeded to sacking the emirs with a 48 hours ultimatum to vacate their palaces.

While the Emirs of Bichi, Rano, Karaye, and Gaya complied with the directive, the Emir of Kano, Aminu Ado Bayero, had gone to court to stop the process.

Both by native ordinance and law, every dethroned Emir is banished or expected to leave Kano for good. Recall that in 1965 when Muhammadu I, Sanusi’s grandfather resigned, having got wind of his possible dethronement, he abdicated to Bauchi, and never returned to Kano.

It was therefore, a surprise that on Saturday, Bayero, who was dethroned, returned to the city of Kano, and moved into a palace in Nasarawa LGA of the state; a move that proved that he has not relinquished power. While Sanusi is operating in the main palace, Bayero is operating from the Nasarawa Palace, creating two full blown emirs for one throne.

The Boss learnt that a squad of soldiers that had been protecting Bayero before he was dethroned, rode with him from the airport to the palace. The same report has it that the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, has been behind Bayero’s moves, especially his flight and residency in the city. The NSA denied the allegation, threatening legal action againat the deputy governor, who made the claim.

Responding after the deposed monarch arrived in Kano to a hero’s welcome from a horde of his supporters, the Deputy Governor of the state, Aminu Gwarzo, blamed Ribadu, for allegedly facilitating the return of Bayero to the palace by providing him with two private jets.

Ribadu, in a letter by his legal team, Aliyu & Musa Chambers, said that Gwarzo should retract his claim, tender apology, or face legal action.

The letter reads: “The attention of our client was drawn to a video clip being shared on different social media platforms wherein you granted an interview at Emir’s Palace in Kano on Saturday, the 25th day of May 2024, in a very calm atmosphere, and without any provocation whatsoever, falsely accusing our client of using his office to kill the people of Kano State and maim their properties.

“In the clip, you were shown to be speaking in Hausa.

“Your false accusations against our client portraying his office as an appendage of a political party and a willing tool to cause chaos in Kano is false and done to damage the hard-earned reputation of our client in the eyes of the right-thinking members of the society and indeed it has succeeded in doing so.

“In all the places he has served, our client has never been accused of any wrongdoing.

“Given this illustrious background, it is inconceivable that someone would harbour the thought that our client would descend his exalted office so low as to interfere in the local tussle of the Kano Emirate.

“The wide coverage you gave your interview has caused serious embarrassment to our client and his family.

“Since the publication, our client has been receiving a barrage of telephone calls both within and outside Nigeria from friends and associates who felt disappointed in him because of the false allegation owing to the fact that it came from a person occupying the office of Deputy Governor of Kano State.

“Our client and his office take your allegations seriously and by this letter, our client is demanding that you provide irrefutable evidence to substantiate your claims.

The return of Bayero consequently prompted the governor to order his arrest.

In a counter, a federal high court in Kano ordered the state government not to enforce the Emirate Council Repeal Law 2024, and desist from from issuing Sanusi appointment letter.

STAND OF SECURITY OPERATIVES

The Kano State Police Command refused to arrest Bayero, saying he would only enforce the court order restraining the state government from dissolving five newly created Emirates in the state, and restatement of Sanusi.

The state Commissioner of Police, Muhammad Hussain Gumel, while making a broadcast, flanked by representatives of other security agencies, vowed to maintain law and order, assuring that security agencies won’t spare anyone trying to temper the peace across the state.

He said: “Let me also remind you that the position of the law is very clear as whoever, under whatever guise is found to be planning to disrupt the peace being enjoyed in the State or feel that he or she can jeopardize the existing security settings in the State will be arrested and made to face the full wrath of the law.

“Therefore, as the Police Command is leading other security agencies to sustain the peace and peaceful coexistence for overriding interests, miscreants should steer clear of violence in all its ramifications and should not take advantage or hijack the current situation to launch an unprovoked attack on people, property and infrastructure of the State. Any person found with such a tendency will be ruthlessly dealt with according to the law of the land

“The combined security agencies in the State have set out all machinery in place to ensure no breakdown of law and order as the safety and security of all the inhabitants in the State remain sacrosanct,” Gumel said.

NBA TAKES A STAND, URGES CAUTION

The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has called for caution in the legal fireworks playing out in Kano, stressing that it is deeply “deeply concerned about these developments in many ways”.

In a statement, NBA chairman in Kano, Sagir Gezawa, said it is the constitutional duty of a state assembly to legislate and once passed, it remains the prerogative of a governor to assent to such law.

“Once assented to by the governor, it has become a Law and its implementation is to be done by state apparatus and of course enforced by a competent court of law,” Gezawa said.

“It’s further within the purview of courts to interpret such law to be in tandem with other existing laws or the constitution.

“In doing so, we urge our members to act responsibly in approaching courts with competent jurisdiction.

“A court order, once given, is sacrosanct and must be obeyed.

“However, it must be noted that while the court has its own mechanism of enforcing its order, it’s not within the powers of the Nigerian Army to deploy troops to enforce court order. This is a sad reminder of the military dictatorship and must be condemned.

“Anyone found wanting or in disobedience of a court order (which is declaratory in nature) must first be proved to have been notified of the existence of the said court order by issuance of Form 48 and subsequently Form 49 notifying such person of the consequences of his or her actions.

“This is in line with the Sheriff and Civil Processes Act and Laws of the various States for enforcing court judgments.

“Engaging security apparatus without the officers of the Deputy Sherriff’s Department of the relevant court that made the order may appear to be self-help which must also be condemned.

“As an association therefore, we call on all state actors, to be mindful of their oaths of office and for the security agencies, their scope of duties so as not to make mockery of our judicial system.”

The NBA said the actions of the state actors “may breach the security and peace” in Kano and “they shall be held accountable in this life or the next,” the statement said.

But some notable personalities including former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar has blamed the Bola Tinubu-led federal government for being behind the crisis in Kano.

Atiku made accusation via a statement by his spokesperson, Mr. Paul Ibe on Saturday.

“The action of the Federal Government in deploying soldiers in Kano in the tussle over the throne of the ancient city is an upset to the peace and security of the state, and also in breach of the 1999 Constitution as Amended.

“In performing their constitutional duties of law making, the Kano State House of Assembly (KSHA) passed the amended Kano State Emirate Council (Repeal) Bill 2024 in consonance with the provision of Section 4 of the Constitution 1999 as Amended whereas the Governor of Kano State, Engr. Abba Kabir Yusuf subsequently signed into law the said bill. The law therefore repealed the 2019 version which balkanized the ancient Kano Emirate into five.

“The foregoing circumstances happened within the confines of the law and in compliance with the powers conferred on the Governor as provided by Section 5(2) of the 1999 Constitution as amended; and also in consultation with the Kingmakers of Kano, reappointed Sanusi Lamido Sanusi (also known as Muhammadu Sanusi II) as the 16th Emir of Kano State and accordingly handed him a letter of appointment.
It is surprising that in the early hours of today, exactly at about 5:30 am the former Emir of Kano, His Majesty Aminu Ado Bayero backed by Federal might made their way into the Nasarawa Palace of the Kano Emirate while the reappointed Emir, Muhammadu Sanusi II was at the Gidan Dabo, which is the main residence of the Emir of Kano.

“In this wise, the former Emir could not have made his way into the Nasarawa Palace without the support of the Federal Government having done so with the support of the Army and other security personnel in his company. The deployment of soldiers in extra constitutional matters such as this undermines the integrity of the Nigerian military.

“We need to remind the Tinubu administration that Kano State is known for peace and harmony spanning thousands of years and any attempt to destablise the peace of the Land of Commerce shall be resisted. Recall that Muhammadu Sanusi II was dethroned on 9th March, 2020 dethroned, Kano forged on in peace without any fracas.

“We wish to state unequivocally that if for any reason, law and order breaks down in Kano State, particularly Kano Municipal, the Federal Government should be held responsible as the act of providing security cover to the former Emir, Aminu Ado Bayero to come back to Kano is an invitation to anarchy,” he said.

In the same vein, the Council of Ulamas, has President Bola Tinubu against plunging Kano into chaos. The group said, the crisis, if not well managed, could escalate and degenerate into chaos.

With the state backing the reinstatement of Sanusi, the path looks smooth for Muhammadu Sanusi II to repossess the emirship of Kano, but all will depend on how the politics of superiority is played in the coming days.

While Tinubu watches without lifting a finger of settlement, the ancient city of Kano, like Rivers State, is slowly burning down.

Headline

How FG Spent N19bn on Presidential Planes in 15 Months – Report

Published

1 week ago

November 12, 2024

Eric

At least N19.43 billion has reportedly been spent on the maintenance and operations of the Presidential Air Fleet from July 2023 to September 2024.

According to GovSpend, a civic tech platform that tracks and analyses the Federal government’s spending, showed that for 2024, the payouts amounted to N13.55billion, representing 66 per cent of the allocations for the fleet in the 2024 fiscal year.

Most disbursements were labeled ‘Forex Transit Funds,’ typically funds allocated for foreign exchange requirements to facilitate international transactions and engagements.

In the context of the Presidential Air Fleet, such funds are used to cover expenses related to operations outside the country, including fuel purchases, maintenance or services in foreign currencies.

“When aircraft on the fleet are abroad, payments are often made in U.S. dollars or another foreign currency to ensure uninterrupted operations,” a government official explained.

In July 2023, N1.52bn was disbursed in two tranches of N846m and N675m for ‘Presidential air fleet forex transit funds.’

The following month, N3.1bn was disbursed in three tranches of N388m, N2bn, and N713m for the same item.

In November of that year, N1.26bn was released to the Presidential Air Fleet Naira transit account.

The first overhead for 2024 came in March, where N1.27bn were disbursed twice, amounting to N2.54bn. The transit account received N6.35bn in April, N4.97bn in May and N210m in July.

August saw the highest frequency of transactions, with N5.60bn released in six separate disbursements.

Although these transactions were not clearly labeled, the monies were paid into the Presidential Air Fleet naira transit account, including the N35m transfer made in September.

In late April, the transit account received N5.08bn; this came around the same time the President was on a two-nation tour to the Netherlands and Saudi Arabia.

Although Tinubu arrived in the Netherlands in a state-owned Gulfstream AeroSpace 550 Jet, the aircraft could not proceed to Saudi Arabia due to unspecified technical problems. He reportedly continued his journey on a chartered private plane.

At the time, the President’s Boeing 737 business jet was undergoing maintenance. It was later replaced with an Airbus A330 purchased for $100m in August through service-wide votes.

The nearly 15-year-old plane, an ACJ330-200, VP-CAC (MSN 1053), is “spacious and furnished with state-of-the-art avionics, customised interior and communications system,” Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga said, adding that it “will save Nigeria huge maintenance and fuel costs, running into millions of dollars yearly.”

The new Airbus A330 is just one of several aircraft currently on the Presidential Air Fleet, arguably one of Africa’s largest, with around 11 aircraft of various makes and models. Until August, it comprised the 19-year-old B737-700 and a 13-year-old Gulfstream Aerospace G550.

The BBJ was acquired during the tenure of former President Olusegun Obasanjo at $43m but became a money guzzler as it aged.

Onanuga, defending the purchase of Airbus A330, argued that the new Airbus 330 aircraft and the costs of maintaining the air fleet were not for the president but in the interest of Nigerians.

“It’s not President Tinubu’s plane; it belongs to the people of Nigeria, it is our property…the President did not buy a new jet; what he has is a refurbished jet – it has been used by somebody else before he got it, but it is a much newer model than the one President Buhari used.

“The one President Buhari used was bought by President Obasanjo some 20 years ago. There was a time when the President went to Saudi Arabia, and the plane developed some problems. The President had to leave the Netherlands with a chartered jet.

“Nigerians should try to prioritise the safety of the President. I’m not sure anybody wishes our president to go and crash in the air. We want his safety so that he can hand it over to whoever wants to take over from him,” Onanuga said.

The presidential aide said he discussed with the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, on the faulty plane [Boeing 737 jet] and he said the maintenance costs were excessive because of the age of the aircraft, hence the need for another plane.

The presidential fixed-wing fleet includes a Gulfstream G500, two Falcon 7Xs, a Hawker 4000, and a Challenger 605.

Three of the seven fixed-wings are reportedly unserviceable. Meanwhile, the rotor-wing fleet includes two Agusta 139s and two Agusta 101s, all operated by the Nigerian Air Force but supervised by the Office of the National Security Adviser.

Former President Buhari promised to reduce the number of aircraft in the PAF to the absolute necessary.

In April 2023, three jets were put up for sale, but there were no specifics on which.

However, efforts to sell one of the Dassault Falcon 7x and the Hawker 4000 in October 2016 stalled when a potential buyer reduced their initial offer from $24m to $11m.

Since 2017, budgetary allocations for the fleet have shown a growing trend, with one exception in 2020.

The allocation for the fleet increased from N4.37bn in 2017 to N20.52bn in 2024, showing a 370 per cent rise in running costs.

In 2018, the fleet’s budget rose significantly by 66.13 per cent to N7.26bn, driven by a substantial increase in capital project allocations while maintaining similar levels for recurrent costs. This upward trajectory continued into 2019, slightly increasing the total allocation to N7.30bn.

The exception came in 2020, when the budget dropped by nearly seven per cent to N6.79bn, primarily due to decreased overhead costs, a reflection of the global economic impacts of lockdowns and disruptions in operations.

By 2021, however, the budget surged dramatically to N12.55bn—a record increase of 84.83 per cent from the previous year.

In 2022, maintenance expenses for each aircraft ranged from $1.5m to $4.5m annually.

The 2022, 2023 and 2024 appropriation acts earmarked N12.48bn, N13.07bn and N20.52bn respectively.

On his way to the 2024 Commonwealth Heads of Government Summit in Samoa, a foreign object damaged the cockpit windscreen of Vice President Kashim Shettima’s GulfStream aircraft during a stopover at JFK Airport in New York.

According to Lee Aerospace, manufacturers of the Gulfstream, jet windshields consist of thick multilayered structures of varying layers of glass and transparent acrylic built to withstand collision with a 2kg object.

However, damage to the windshield must have affected its inner layers. While specific prices for replacement can vary based on supplier, labour rates and regional costs, estimates suggest that a single windshield replacement for a G550 can range from $50,000 to $70,000 for part and labour costs.

In an interview with our correspondent, the General Secretary of the Aviation Round Table, Olumide Ohunayo, blamed the meteoric rise in the allocations for the PAF on the age of some of the aircraft in the fleet and declining value of the naira as well as the “commercial use” of aircraft by the Nigerian Air Force.

Ohunayo said, “The cost will definitely increase over the years because for one, this issue of the naira against the dollar. As the naira keeps falling to the dollar, we will see a rise in cost because most of the costs of training crew and engineers and replacing aircraft parts are all in dollars.

“Also, some of these aircraft are not new. The older the aircraft, the higher the cost of maintenance and operation.

“Lastly, during these past years, terrorism and insecurity have increased in Nigeria, which has also affected the cost of insuring the aircraft.”

For his part, the Executive Chairman of the Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, Debo Adeniran, argued that the administration’s spending habits were opposite to Nigerians’ expectations of frugality.

“What we are getting from this administration is opposite to our expectation. We thought we would have an administration that would be frugal in spending and very meticulous at implementing its budget.

“But what we are getting is an administration that has fallen in love with profligacy; that doesn’t see anything wrong in living big amid a poverty-stricken nation.

“It is a reenactment of the Shagari administration, whereby they bought the biggest Mercedes Benz and made themselves as comfortable as possible without considering how much the masses are suffering.

“So when you look at a Vice President saying he’s not travelling [to Samoa] again because there was a splinter on the windscreen of his private aircraft. Why should that be the case?

“First and foremost, we need to be represented at such an international meeting, where we should be well represented by the first two citizens of this country.

“He abandoned that, which means we would have lost certain representation that we deserve at that forum. Two, money will have been spent on advance parties that went ahead of the Vice President. But he abandoned the journey altogether.”