By Erasmus Ikhide
TWO major issues — among others — have been reeving, racking and cracking up the absorb government of insensitivity and banal impunity of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Presidency in the last 15 months that have conjoined to tank Nigerian economy. One is the unthinkable completion of the Vice-President residence, Mr Kashim Shettima that gulps a whopping sum of #21 billion Naira, which an architect said the construction costs is far below the prompted price.
The second and most traumatizing is that Tinubu’s Presidency has spent #14.77b in 11 months to repair some of the twelve Presidential Air Fleet amidst anguish that the National Assembly has secretly approved the purchase of two new aircraft for the president and his vice in the sum of #22 billion Naira for that purpose. The Senate on Thursday last week denied approving the purchase of a new presidential jet for President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima as speculated. Senate President, Godswill Akpabio clarified this during the plenary session. Akpabio said, “We have never approved the purchase of a presidential jet.
I’m not so bothered about Akpabio’s denial which has become a traditional sound tracks of corrupt government, successively. President Goodluck Jonathan and President Buhari had their ways with brazen corruption — using Presidential Air Fleet maintenance as decoy throughout their reign of fraud. While President Goodluck Jonathan spent a whooping some of N72. Billion Naira repairing presidential air fleet in 8-year — it is on record that President Buhari’s repair costs quadrupled that of President Goodluck Jonathan in. another 8-year of the locusts.
That recklessly denied statement from Nigerian Senate President, Godswill Akpabio eventually sparked outrage and controversy, either true or false characterized Nigerian Presidency penchants for frivolous and elephant projects engagements that massages their nativity and vanity. That the issue of purchasing new aircrafts for the presidency in the realm of #22 billion was ever mentioned in the midst of convulsing economy suggests that the government prioritizes the President’s safety and comfort over and the welfare of ordinary citizens, who are struggling with hunger and economic hardship.
No one should be surprised with the widespread criticism, with many seeing it as insensitive, elitist, and out of touch with the realities faced by everyday Nigerians. The consideration of an approval of a private jet for the president while many citizens struggle to make ends is a testament to the feelings and the people’s beliefs APC/Tinubu is out-and-out to afflict further economic hardship on the citizenry.
Why will a reasoning and reasonable government be planning to purchase two new aircraft for the Presidential Air Fleet (PAF) at a cost of over $623.4 million (#918.7 billion), if we may ask? How are we sure, and how can we trust a government whose policies are run on impulses, instead of studiousness and studied blueprints agenda? We have been here before. Despite promises to reduce the size of the fleet — the previous administration failed to do so — and the current government has continued to spend heavily on the PAF. Opposition parties and experts have criticized the decision, citing the need for moderation in financial budgeting and accountability in the face of economic hardship.
Unfortunately, President Tinubu and his abhorrent minders have deadened their conscience not to feel, hear or see the searing torment Nigerians are going through since the ill-thought removal of fuel subsidy that brought the nation to its knees. Come to think of it: how the unbearable extremity of poverty, the collapse of security architecture and the consequential greed of the less than 1% few elites and citizens’ docility are managing to tag along without social unrest is the highest miracle in 21st century!
The day-by-day crashing of the economy without any signs of immediate or imminent recovery should be ominous enough for President Tinubu Ahmed Tinubu to breath life into the economy to resuscitate the nerve-wracking nation back to life. Until that’s done and urgently too, Nigeria will remain on a tetachuks for now and a long time to come.
Erasmus Ikhide contributed this piece via: ikhideluckyerasmus@gmail.com.
