The Member of Parliament of Bimbilla and former Minister of Defence Dominic Nitiwul characterised the presidential jet as unfit for purpose and insufficiently safe for then-President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s travel in June 2021.
He further stated that the jet was not adequately serviceable to accommodate enough passengers, noting that the president often had to travel a day in advance of official events because the jet lacked the necessary facilities for him to shower during the journey.
He defended the former president’s use of private jets by highlighting the non-airworthiness of the presidential jet, in response to a question raised in Parliament by North Tongu MP, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa.
“This aircraft will carry a load of 11 persons minus the crew. When this aircraft is travelling to the eastern part of the USA or Asia, it will not load a crew of more than eight plus the luggage. So it depends on where it is going. Secondly, I have also said the aircraft has to do refuelling stops, and also in this COVID-19 when you are travelling to multiple destinations like the president’s recent travel, the Falcon couldn’t have been taken because he would have had to do technical stops which are not desirable, and when he is travelling with more than 20 people like he has been doing for business trips that brought huge sums of money for this country, he will need more than just a Falcon, otherwise, the others would have to go a day ahead before the president to prepare themselves.
“In fact, the president would also have to go a day ahead because no president can shower in this aircraft. He cannot move from this aircraft straight into a meeting,” he was quoted saying by citinewsroom.com.
Nitiwul’s disclosure about the unserviceable presidential jet followed Ablakwa’s accusation that former President Akufo-Addo had spent GHS 2.8 million on his travels to South Africa and France, using a private jet for the trips.
