₦airaland Forum

benuejosh:
With the Nigeria First Policy, prices from multichoice will crash soon.

Mr President is doing everything possible for us to live a happy life in Nigeria.

When will Tinubu ditch his all-black armored Cadillac Escalade SUV and switch to either Nord or Innoson?

More

What was billed as a 'Renewed Hope' has, for many, morphed into renewed hardship, starvation, and hunger, as fuel prices soar, the naira stumbles, insecurities rise, and governance feels more like an experimental driving lesson without an instructor.or brakes. As the anniversary looms, the question isn’t just how we got here, but whether anyone at the wheel knows where we’re going.

Cc seun OAM4J Nlfpmod fergie001

saintkel:
I just don't understand people....so Obi building a brewery is not economical viable?

Agbadorians, BATerians, and Mandate standers are one of the most unreasonable and senseless set of humans ever

They seem untroubled by an individual effectively mortgaging an entire state for over two decades, systematically diverting and extracting the commonwealth of Lagosians through a so-called blueprint that channels public funds from the state’s treasury into personal coffers.

Rather than investing in productive ventures such as a brewery to generate employment opportunities

At least N20.03bn was spent on the maintenance and operations of the Presidential Air Fleet from July 2023 to December 2024, The PUNCH reports.

This was as the new presidential jet purchased last year has been flown to South Africa for refurbishment and upgrades.

Findings by our correspondents from GovSpend, a civic tech platform that tracks and analyses the Federal Government’s spending, revealed that for 2024, the payouts amounted to N14.15bn, representing 71 per cent of the allocations for the fleet in the 2024 fiscal year.

Most disbursements were labelled ‘Forex Transit Funds,’ usually funds allocated for foreign exchange requirements to facilitate international transactions and engagements.



For the Presidential Air Fleet, such funds cover expenses related to operations abroad, including fuel purchases, maintenance or services in foreign currencies.

“When aircraft on the fleet are abroad, payments are often made in U.S. dollars or another foreign currency to ensure we have uninterrupted operations,” a government official explained.

In July 2023, N1.52bn was disbursed in two tranches of N846m and N675m for ‘Presidential air fleet forex transit funds.’


The following month, N3.1bn was disbursed in three tranches of N388m, N2bn, and N713m for the same item. In November of that year, N1.26bn was released to the Presidential Air Fleet naira transit account.

The first overhead for 2024 was in March, when N1.27bn was disbursed twice, amounting to N2.54bn. The transit account received N6.35bn in April, N4.97bn in May and N210m in July.

In August, N5.60bn was released in six separate disbursements, the highest frequency that year. The monies were paid into the Presidential Air Fleet naira transit account, including a N168m transfer made on September 11 and 19. From December 7 to 24, 2025, N469.72m was released in eight tranches.

In April, the transit account received N5.08bn; this came around the same time the President was on a two-nation tour to the Netherlands and Saudi Arabia.

Although Tinubu arrived in the Netherlands in a state-owned Gulfstream AeroSpace 550 Jet, the aircraft could not proceed to Saudi Arabia due to unspecified technical problems. He reportedly continued his journey on a chartered private plane.

At the time, the President’s Boeing 737 business jet was undergoing maintenance. It was later replaced with an Airbus A330 purchased for $100m in August through the service-wide votes.

The nearly 15-year-old plane, an ACJ330-200, VP-CAC (MSN 1053), is “spacious and furnished with state-of-the-art avionics, customised interior and communications system,” Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, said, adding “it will save Nigeria huge maintenance and fuel costs, running into millions of dollars yearly.”


However, The PUNCH observes that since February 2025, the President has been using a San Marino-registered BBJ (REG: T7-NAS).

Sources who spoke to one of our correspondents confirmed that the primary aircraft had been flown to South Africa to change its livery to reflect the office of the President.

“The last I heard is that they took it abroad, I think to South Africa, to change the body design. You know it doesn’t have the green white green,” one source said, asking to remain anonymous.

“It’s not only the body paint. I learned they are doing some refurbishment on it,” a second official stated.

The new Airbus A330 is just one of several aircraft currently on the Presidential Air Fleet, arguably one of Africa’s largest, with around 11 aircraft of various makes and models.

Until August, it comprised the 19-year-old B737-700 (BBJ) and a 13-year-old Gulfstream Aerospace G550. The BBJ was acquired during the tenure of former President Olusegun Obasanjo at $43m, but became a money guzzler as it aged.

The presidential fixed-wing fleet includes a Gulfstream G500, two Falcon 7Xs, a Hawker 4000, and a Challenger 605. Three of the seven fixed wings are reportedly unserviceable.


The rotor-wing fleet includes two Agusta 139s and two Agusta 101s, all operated by the Nigerian Air Force but supervised by the Office of the National Security Adviser.


Since 2017, budgetary allocations for the PAF have shown a growing trend, with one exception in 2020. The allocation for the fleet increased from N4.37bn in 2017 to N20.52bn in 2024, showing a 370 per cent rise in running costs. In 2022, maintenance expenses for each aircraft ranged from $1.5m to $4.5m annually.

In 2018, the fleet’s budget rose significantly by 66.13 per cent to N7.26bn, driven by a substantial increase in capital project allocations while maintaining similar levels for recurrent costs. This upward trajectory continued into 2019, slightly increasing the total allocation to N7.30bn.

The exception came in 2020, when the budget dropped by nearly 7 per cent to N6.79bn, primarily due to decreased overhead costs, a reflection of the global economic impacts of lockdowns and disruptions in operations.

By 2021, however, the budget surged dramatically to N12.55bn—a record increase of 84.83 per cent from the previous year. The 2022, 2023 and 2024 appropriation acts earmarked N12.48bn, N13.07bn and N20.52bn respectively.

On his way to the 2024 Commonwealth Heads of Government Summit in Samoa, a foreign object damaged the cockpit windscreen of Vice President Kashim Shettima’s Gulf Stream aircraft during a stopover at JFK Airport in New York.

According to Lee Aerospace, manufacturers of Gulfstream jet windshields, these thick, multilayered structures comprise varying layers of glass and transparent acrylic, built to withstand collisions with a 2 kg object.


However, damage to the windshield must have affected its inner layers. While specific prices for replacement can vary based on supplier, labour rates and regional costs, estimates suggest that a single windshield replacement for a G550 can range from $50,000 to $70,000 for part and labour costs.

In an interview with our correspondent, the General Secretary of the Aviation Round Table, Olumide Ohunayo, blamed the meteoric rise in the allocations for the PAF on the age of some of the fleet’s aircraft, the declining value of the naira, and the Nigerian Air Force’s “commercial use” of aircraft.

Ohunayo explained, “The cost will definitely increase over the years because, for one, this issue of the naira against the dollar. As the naira keeps falling to the dollar, we will see a rise in cost because most of the costs of training crew and engineers and replacing aircraft parts are all in dollars.

“Also, some of these aircraft are not new. The older the aircraft, the higher the cost of maintenance and operation. Lastly, during these past years, terrorism and insecurity have increased in Nigeria, which has also affected the cost of insuring the aircraft.”

The Executive Chairman of the Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, Debo Adeniran, argued that the administration’s spending habits were contrary to Nigerians’ expectations of frugality.

“What we are getting from this administration is the opposite of our expectations. We thought we would have an administration that would be frugal in spending and very meticulous at implementing its budget. But what we are getting is an administration that has fallen in love with profligacy, that doesn’t see anything wrong in living big in a poverty-stricken nation.

Adeniran further said, “It is a reenactment of the Shagari administration, whereby they bought the biggest Mercedes Benz and made themselves as comfortable as possible without considering how much the masses are suffering.


“So when you look at a Vice President saying he’s not travelling [to Samoa] again because there was a splinter on the windscreen of his private aircraft. Why should that be the case?

“First and foremost, we need to be represented at such an international meeting, where we should be well represented by the first two citizens of this country. He abandoned that, which means we would have lost certain representation that we deserve at that forum. Two, money will have been spent on advance parties that went ahead of the Vice President. But he abandoned the journey altogether.”

The CEO of Centurion Security Limited, John Ojikutu, justified the figure considering all related expenses.

“That’s not a big deal. If they are going to go and repair, particularly for C-checks, it’s always around that range. They will fly it abroad, but fuel, catering, and hotel bills are also involved; pilots will fly it back, and the figure likely includes far more than the direct cost of repairing the aircraft,” Ojikutu explained.

Meanwhile, the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, argued that the new Airbus 330 aircraft and the costs of maintaining the air fleet are not for the President’s comfort but in the interest of Nigerians.

“It’s not President Tinubu’s plane; it belongs to the people of Nigeria, it is our property…the President did not buy a new jet; what he has is a refurbished jet – it has been used by somebody else before he got it, but it is a much newer model than the one President Buhari used.

“The one President Buhari used was bought by President Obasanjo some 20 years ago. There was a time when the President went to Saudi Arabia, and the plane developed some problems. The President had to leave the Netherlands with a chartered jet.


“Nigerians should try to prioritise the safety of the President. I’m not sure anybody wishes our President to go and crash in the air. We want his safety so that he can hand it over to whoever wants to take over from him,” Onanuga said.

The presidential aide said he discussed with the NSA, Nuhu Ribadu, on the faulty plane (Boeing 737 jet), and he said the maintenance costs were excessive because of the age of the aircraft, hence the need for another plane.

https://punchng.com/refitting-repainting-newly-acquired-presidential-jet-flown-to-south-africa/#google_vignette

Obigwe described Ukachukwu's situation, saying, "Nicholas Ukachukwu is now floating like the spirit of a deceased person without a funeral...He loves celebrating emptiness and pettiness."

This perfectly describes the APC

IgOga:
No he speaks whatever comes to his mind. He claims he knows the winner of Edo election and not the winner INEC announced. So who is this winner? He is not a very bright man but then there are many young people who don't know him. He needs to guard his tongue before it puts him in trouble. All he would be asked is to tell us the winner and he would start to stammer.

You're entitled to your opinion just as he is, so why the wahala? No be witch you be.

zero8zero:
Using religious sentiments as campaign tool was not smart at all. He won't get away with that format in 2027, if he doesn't run away to meet Atiku.

The notorious narcotics trafficker, certificate forger, and buccaneering power grabber known for forfeiting over $460,000 to the U.S. government due to drug-related proceeds, remains visibly unsettled whenever legal decisions from the U.S. threaten to unearth further details. With his Emilokan-style tribal and ethnic bigotry and the bitter politics that saw him hire fake pastors in borrowed robes to endorse his controversial same-faith ticket, he is considered “smart,” I guess.

MoneyMan5:
Out of all the sectors to invest in, Peter Obi could only invested in alcohol, he didn't see technology or even if it was just a small modular refinery to refine small amount of petroleum products, he could have achieved it because of his relationship with Goodluck then.

He didn't even see Tinubu to copy and arrange one free trade zone in Anambra, it would have been booming by now.

Peter Obi is a very big failure in all ramifications, Nigeria dodged a disaster by not letting him into aso rock.

What will you now describe Tinubu... certainly a mascot of incompetence

Peter Obi stands today as the most powerful political force in Nigeria.

A one-man opposition.

A relentless voice against the tide, targeted by the full weight of the APC's structure, apparatus, and propaganda machinery, yet he remains unshaken.

They try to silence him, but he only grows louder.

He speaks the truth, and the people listen.

Putindbutt:
See this one, if Twitter algorithm was acting like this, headless mob will have no place to wail, insult and peddle falsehoods.

You just described yourself and everything you do here

PressMyButton:
I have since noticed that nothing has changed after my complaint a few days ago. Yesterday, I created a thread where Tanko Yakassai refuted Baba Ahmed's claim, I then made a comment saying " the real Nigerians from the North have spoken, Baba Ahmed should swallow his opinions and go to Mauritania and vomit it there. The next thing I got was a ban. Again, a few minutes back, I made a comment on a thread where Sowore slammed Peter Óbi calling him dumb. On the thread, I said " I don't care about the both of them if Sowore and Óbi were locked up in a ring like Portable and Speed Darlington and break each other's jaw. Again, I entered a ban straight up.
If I am punished for the reasons, I do take responsibility but I cannot have it being punished for doing no wrong. Back then, we were being banned most of the time for replying a poster with insults, the Moderators would then informed us of the exact statements that got us the ban, even if sometimes, were ridiculous. However, this new bot is not observing that at all. Even when you made a comment in your own comment box without insults, the bot would come for you. And it seems as if no matter our feedbacks about it, nothing is going to change after all.
I have a duty to project a lot of good things the current Administration is doing, although there are teething challenges, still there lots of positives. I appreciate the opportunity this platform have offered but also I don't think I can keep us this way. Users alike would appreciate it if you would make a little adjustments around this for a better interaction. This, however, would be my final complaint on this issue while I look forward to seeing an improvement as soon as possible.

When do you plan to withdraw? Kindly be quick about it.

helinues:
Have some shame. Your principal couldn't invest the state money in something meaningful but beer.

The same investment is worth to nothing yet you are still talking

Shame oo

The biggest beer brand in the entire South-East, and to some extent the South-South, is what you described as a meaningless investment. .

Truly, you have sunk beyond redemption.

helinues:
Did he lie?

The last time a sitting Nigeria president visited Anambra state, it was for the launching of an investment Hero beer which is worth to nothing currently. State money wasted just like that

You guys keep exposing how low you have sunk.

Hero beer is the biggest beer brand in the entire South-East and, to some extent, the South-South

helinues:
Basket mouth don open mouth again oo

While they reveal the emptiness of their thoughts.

Whenever I see or hear Daniel Bwala, I’m stirred by the potent words below, words that have since come to fruition.

Tinubu is Nigeria’s de-marketer-in-chief.

What serious foreign investor would commit capital to a country led by an individual whose early life remains shrouded in mystery where the first twenty years of his life are undocumented, his biological parents are unknown, and there is no verifiable record of his primary or secondary education?

Which investor would trust a nation led by a man once implicated in narcotics trafficking, who forfeited over $460,000 to the United States government in connection with drug-related proceeds, and who remains visibly unsettled whenever legal decisions from the U.S. threaten to unearth further details?

Who would risk investing in a country where the president routinely travels to Europe for holidays while the nation grapples with deepening insecurity, widespread hunger, and increasing poverty?

What confidence can investors have in a government where the president’s son, holding no constitutional office, can allegedly order violent attacks on citizens, threaten lives, and boast of impunity, simply because of his father’s position?

Why would anyone invest in a country where the president openly disregards the rule of law, violates constitutional provisions, and acts as the chief lawbreaker in a system that demands his protection of democratic norms?

And finally, who would invest in a country where the president can unilaterally declare a state of emergency, remove a duly elected governor, deputy governor and members of a state house of assembly without any constitutional backing, while the National Assembly watches in silence?

This is the image Nigeria currently presents to the world under Tinubu's leadership, one of uncertainty, lawlessness, and institutional decay.

Reacting, Adelabu reportedly “advised against the proposed establishment of four power plants with a capacity to generate 1,200MW each, by the commission.”

It is official: Adelabu is the worst Minister of Power in Nigeria's history.

Modified:

It's obvious that Nairaland is now engaged in the distortion of narratives.

There seems to be a significant discrepancy between the headline displayed on the forum and the content of the original source.

The source article is titled, “Power Minister Opposes Construction of 4800MW Nuclear power Plants,” while the headline on Nairaland reads, “Power Minister: Nuclear Energy Is the Future of Energy Generation

usecondom:
Wetin dey sup?

Nothing dey sup

Left with nothing, coming with nothing

tishbite41:
He was in the APC before he defected back to the PDP.
Infact the APC then described as a person who brought nothing and left with nothing

And now he has returned to the APC with nothing, just as he left with nothing.

Defections: One Party State ‘ll suffocate Nigerians, lead to anarchy – Jonathan warns


FORMER President Goodluck Jonathan has warned that any attempt or manipulation to go through the back door to impose a one-party system into the nation’s political space will surely suffocate the country and possibly lead to confusion and anarchy.


Giving his tribute yesterday in Abuja during the Memorial Lecture and Day of Tribute for the late former Federal Commissioner for Information and South South Leader, Chief Edwin Clark, the former President who noted that a one party state may not be an evil thing because Julius Nyerere of Tanzania used it unite his country because of many tribes, but was procedural and not through manipulation.

According to Jonathan, if one party state has become desirable for the country, the process must be thorough, it must be systemic, not by accident political manipulations

The fear of the former President is coming against the backdrop of the gale of defections sweeping through the ranks and strongholds of the country’s opposition parties, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, the Labour Party, LP and the New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP to the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.


Jonathan who described late South South Leader as his father, said that there was no need to look for any replacement for Clark because that will not be achievable because he was a unique personality, with very sharp memory that no one can beat, just as he said that he was courageous, ready to tackle anybody, anytime


https://www.vanguardngr.com/2025/05/defections-one-party-state-ll-suffocate-nigerians-lead-to-anarchy-jonathan-warns/#google_vignette

yarimo:
This is very commendable from the authentic national chairman of labour party Mr Julius abure

It is no longer Lamidi Apapa.

Tinubu has ensured that you have become completely confused.

yarimo:
The boy will soon get schoolaship from peter obi

Just as you have received your own schoolaship from Tinubu.

Egbetokun has successfully destroyed whatever was left of the Nigerian police.
What exactly is a 'special police unit for elite protection'?


The creation of a 'special police unit for elite protection' raises serious concerns.

Are we now to believe that taxpayers' funds are being used to safeguard the elite, while the general populace is left vulnerable?

ERockson:
IPOB has found another Hero in VDM

Who is your hero?

A notorious narcotics trafficker, certificate forger, and buccaneering power grabber who engages in criminal state capture.

aswani:
Oh dear Peter Obi, looks like time to pack your bags again as you have backed the wrong horse..... ...again.

Ṣebi you used Abure to teach Apapa a lesson, then you wanted to teach Abure himself a lesson, how market Okwute?

Don't tell me you took this kangaroo suspension seriously.