PRESIDENT
Muhammadu Buhari has asked state house officials to sell nine of the 16
aircraft in Nigeria's presidential fleet as part of a cost-cutting drive to
reduce the amount the government costs the country.
Nigeria has one
of the most expensive governments in the world, with the National Assembly
alone costing about 3% of the country's budget. Nigerian legislators are the
highest paid in the world and the presidency is run like a monarchy with 16 VIP
jets used to ferry a large retinue of aides whenever the president travels
abroad.
However,
President Buhari who was elected with a mandate to cut graft, squandermania and
eliminate corruption, has begun tackling the problem. He now travels with a
very small team and unlike previous presidents who were picked up on the
tarmac, he goes through airport security just like any other passenger.
Nigeria's
presidential fleet, registered as Nigerian Air Force aircraft, is one of the
largest in Africa and the third largest in the country after those of Arik Air
and Aero Contractors. According to one aviation source, who is aware of the
directive to sell the aircraft, the presidency has a number of serviceable and
unserviceable aircraft that need to be disposed of in order to reduce the
amount spent by the federal government for maintenance annually.
Annually, the
federal government spends over N12bn (£380m) on the maintenance of the
presidential fleet, including a Boeing 738 BBJ, NAF 001 or Eagle One, used by
the president for his travels Nigerian Air Force reveals that the fleet also
boasts of two Dassault Falcon 900 jets, a Gulfstream IVSP, a Gulfstream V, a
Dornier Do 228, which can carry 19 passengers, one Beechcraft King Air B200 and
three AugustaWestland AW139 helicopters.
Other planes in
the Nigerian Air Force VIP transport fleet include two Dassault Falcon 7X jets,
one Hawker Siddeley 125-800 and one Cessna 550 Citation II. Each of the two
Dassault Falcon 7X jets were purchased for $51.1m in 2010 while the Gulfstream
550 cost $53.3m.
Aviation experts
also put the average price of the Falcon 900 at $35m, that of the Gulfstream
IVSP at $40m, the Gulfstream V at $45m, the Cessna Citation at $7m and the
Hawker Siddeley at $15m. Although all the aircraft are under the presidential
fleet, about eight of the planes are reserved strictly for the president.
These include the
Boeing 737, the two Gulfstream 550 jets, the Gulfstream V jet, two Falcon 7X
planes, the Hawker Siddeley aircraft and one AugustaWestland chopper. Others
including the two Falcon 900 planes, the Dornier, the Cessna Citation, the
Beechracft King Air, and two AugustaWestland choppers, are reserved for
executive airlifts.
Aircraft reserved
for executive airlift are used by the vice president, senate president, speaker
of the House of Representatives, ministry of foreign affairs and to convey
African heads of states visiting or departing Nigeria. Top of the range though
is the Boeing 738 BBJ, which has a master bedroom, washrooms and showers, a
conference and dining area and seats 25 to 50 passengers and would cost at
least $100m to replace today.
Written by Unknown
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