President Jonathan’s 11th Private Jet!
The Presidency has made a proposal for an upfront deposit of N1.5billion for
a brand new private jet, which will become the Presidential Air Fleet’s (PAF)
11th aircraft. This figure is contained in the details of the 2014
Appropriation Bill presented to the National Assembly by President Goodluck
Jonathan through the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. The Federal
Government has budgeted another N1.52b for the maintenance of the 10 aircraft
currently in the PAF in 2014 and it is now set to spend just about that amount
on a new one. This prodigious squandering of taxpayers’ money is reckless and
unacceptable.
The PAF already boasts two Falcon 7X jets, two Falcon 900 jets, Gulfstream
550, one Boeing 737 BBJ (Nigerian Air Force 001 or Eagle One), and Gulfstream
IVSP. Others are one Gulfstream V, Cessna Citation 2 aircraft and Hawker
Siddley 125-800 jet. The combined estimated value of the PAF is about $390.5m
(N60.53bn). According to industry experts, it costs a minimum of 20 per cent
of that figure to maintain them annually. So we’re looking at about $58.57m
(N9.08bn) yearly for maintenance. Private jets are money guzzlers either in
the air or on land.
The proclivity of this administration for frivolous spending is well
documented. The government has been severely criticised in the past for
the colossal amount of embezzlement, rip-off and wastage that have been its
hallmark. The rationale behind this new aircraft in the PAF must be condemned
.
Apparently to hush the cacophony of voices that will rise in opposition to the
proposed new jet, the Presidency in its usual deceitful manner, has made part
payment for what can best be described as a completely unnecessary toy of
comfort. The Nigerian PAF is already bloated. If he can’t travel in any
of the 10 jets in PAF’s possession, then there’s absolutely no need for an
eleventh one.
At a time we would think the numerous editorials and op-eds have succeeded in
curbing waste and frivolities which this government now symbolises, then came
this new proposal. We must continue to resist their recalcitrance. This lavish
lifestyle must be checked.
The waste in government is also demonstrated in the large entourage that
accompanies Mr. President on his foreign trips. One can only imagine the
millions spent on hotel bills and estacodes that accrue to the government
officials. According to reports, world leaders are stunned at the strangely
large number of such entourage. The recent trip of President Jonathan in the
first week of January this year to Kenya and the hullabaloo about his
entourage are apt.
It is shocking that the same people who have budgeted millions for this new
flying toy are aware that the country has no national carrier as I write. It
is shameful that the PAF has about the third largest fleet of aircraft in the
country with a total of 10 aircraft, coming closely behind Aero Contractors
with 12 and Arik Air, the largest commercial airline in Nigeria with a fleet
of 23 aircraft. Nigeria happens to be one of the few countries in the world
with such a large PAF. It is ridiculous that this is happening in an aviation
sector that is dominated by foreign airlines. Nigerian carriers are going
under due to cash constraints. Countries with visionary and focused leadership
like Malaysia, Ghana, South Africa and a host of others across Europe maintain
only one aircraft in their PAF.
As the much publicised take-off of the proposed national carrier before the
end of the year failed, it won’t be out of place to make a case for the
government to seriously consider converting the PAF to a national carrier,
retaining one or two for use by Mr. President and his co-travellers. The
private jets can form the hub of the charter aircraft.
What better example than the one given by a national leader like British Prime
Minister, David Cameron, in 2010 when he slummed it in business class of a
commercial airline flying from London to Washington. He was caught on camera
swanning around the world in hired jets. He flies around the world on British
Airways! Had it been in Nigeria, security risks, flight delays are few of the
sundry reasons government officials would have given for not flying commercial
airlines. The U.S. President, Barack Obama, reportedly pays for his food, ours
spends almost a billion naira to entertain himself and members of his
government yearly.
It amazes many Nigerians who watch in utter disbelief the profligate nature of
government.
This government has embarked on some white elephants like mere renovation of
official residences with billions of naira. We can recall the uproar that
greeted the N2.2billion allocated to the construction of a plush banqueting
hall, last year, with the lame excuse that what the country had was way
smaller than what other tiny African countries have.
In this part of the world, only citizens are asked to cut costs, make
sacrifices; the pains of today are incomparable to the joy of tomorrow are
some of the ‘blues’ we get daily from government. In the same breath,
political office holders, to our chagrin, take their spending to absurd
heights. Sacrifice is a language that the over 60 per cent impoverished
population must understand while our leaders continue their obsession with
living in opulence. They sacrifice nothing. In these circumstances, how do you
convince the various labour unions who are waiting on the flanks to embark on
strike to press home their demands that there are no funds to meet their
grievances? Downturn in government’s finances would be a hard sell in a
situation where the Presidency is competing with individuals for private jets.
It is lamentable that at a time when we still haven’t seen the infrastructural
dividends promised with funds freed up from the partial fuel subsidy removed,
the President is more concerned with splashing billions on banqueting hall,
renovation of residential apartments and covert medical tourism trips abroad.
This waste in the face of limited resources extends to the federal bureaucracy
that has brought about an increase in the number of ministries from 21 to
about 40 with the number of ministers jumping in equal quantum or even more.
•Theophilus Ilevbare is a public affairs commentator. Engage him on
twitter, @tilevbare. He blogs at
http://ilevbare.com
Source:
Punch
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