-Amidst hardship and Luxury Air Jacuzzi
The Akufo-Addo government has decided to buy a second presidential jet so that the President can stop spending millions of cedis to hire private luxury jets for his travels.
The announcement at a time that Ghana is borrowing to service its debt was made by Jubilee House spokesman, Eugene Arhin on Monday.
“You would recollect that when the government of President Kufuor left office in 2008, it had procured two jets – the current Falcon and a bigger one, but for one reason or the other, the bigger jet was cancelled, and we were left with just one. That has happened, but you will recall that the Defence Minister stated clearly that the government has decided to buy a bigger jet to save us from all these troubles,” Arhin stated.
“I don’t want to go into the details, but I am sure that when the Minister gets the opportunity, he will give further information on what the government is doing in that respect, but I am sure of the fact that government is already in the process of getting a bigger jet for use.”
This is expectedly the government’s way of assuaging the concerns of Ghanaians that the President is spending too much money on a private luxury jet for his travels even though the country already has a Presidential jet.
Defence Minister Dominic Nitiwul had claimed the President had no choice but to hire the expensive jet because he needed to shower onboard.
Ghanaians have been angry that the President has abandoned the Falcon presidential jet used by all of Akufo-Addo’s predecessors and has been hiring the luxurious LXIO jumbo jet for his travels at a whopping US$14,000 per hour.
The government’s explanation for abandoning the Presidential jet for a private one is that there is no shower facility on the Falcon so that President Akufo-Addo can bathe in the air closer to the angels.
According to Eugene Arhin, the Defence Minister, Dominic Nitiwul, has already started the processes for the procurement of the bigger jet.
The president’s expensive junketing has been highlighted several times by MP for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto who points out that so far Akufo-Addo has blown over Ghc10million on expensive luxury travels, within the space of months.
Mr. Ablakwa sought answers as to why the President allegedly chartered a luxurious jet that cost GH¢3.7 million for his recent trip.
“The President has [again] chartered another flight, which cost us GH¢3.7 million. I am filing two other questions on the latest revelations, and I am hoping that this time, the government’s ministers will not pussyfoot and run away from accountability as they have done all of these months,” queried Okudzeto.