The Senior Special Assistant on Print Media to the President, Abdulaziz Abdulaziz, has revealed how the Federal Government raised money to acquire a presidential jet for the use of President Bola Tinubu despite the fact that it was not appropriated for.
The presidential aide was quoted to have made the revelation in an interview he granted BBC Hausa Service, monitored by Vanguard.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, had confirmed the existence of a new presidential jet on Monday when he said that was what Tinubu used for his official trip to France.
Speaking in the interview with BBC Hausa Service on Tuesday as reported by Vanguard News, Abdulaziz said the fund for the purchase of the Airbus A330 was from the Service Wide Vote.
The Service Wide Vote is a part of the yearly budget of the country devoted largely to contingencies.
In some cases, it constitutes more than 5 percent of the annual budget and it is not regularly replenished as statutorily required by law.
Abdulaziz also told BBC Hausa Service that the presidential jet is not a brand new one.
He said it was a fairly used aircraft bought through an auction conducted by a German bank, adding that a Saudi Arabia-based company owned it before it was bought by the Federal Government.
The National Assembly reportedly said it would approve the purchase of the aircraft after the one in use, a Boeing B737-700, had safety record issues and became cost inefficient.
The now 19-year-old Boeing B737-700 was bought during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
According to a report by Daily Trust, the new Airbus A330 with an elaborate VIP configuration, is 15 years old.
The aircraft, with registration number: 5N-FGA, was manufactured in September 2009 and delivered in November 2009 with registration number: VP-CAC, to Midroc Aviation, which is based in Jeddah, King Abdulaziz International Airport, Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi Arabian aviation company operated the aircraft for 12 years before it was acquired by AMAC Aerospace in April 2021.
AMAC Aerospace is a Switzerland-based company, which operated the aircraft for three years before it was acquired by the Nigerian Government and upgraded to its current status.
The deal was reportedly brokered by L & L International LLC, an American aviation firm based in Miami, Florida, United States of America.
The Daily Trust report said the Federal Government of Nigeria paid over $100 million to acquire the new jet.
