Members of the House of Representatives were divided on the floor of the Green Chamber on Wednesday at plenary when the issue of a recent breakdown of the presidential jets was brought to their attention by Ahmed Satomi.
Satomi, who represents Jere Federal Constituency, Borno State, while moving a motion of urgent public importance, noted that in April, President Bola Tinubu was forced to fly in a chartered plane from the Netherlands to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to attend the World Economic Forum.
Recall that Vice President Kashim Shettima was, on Sunday, forced to cancel his trip to the United States where he was scheduled to represent President Tinubu at the 2024 US-Africa Business Summit as a result of a faulty aircraft.
Santomi said the National Security Adviser must come before the committee to explain the whereabouts of the money appropriated for the maintenance of the presidential aircraft.
“We have appropriated enough funds for them to maintain this aircraft, that is why I say the NSA should come and tell Nigerians what is happening. we have all it takes as a country not only to own but also to maintain the aeroplanes,” he said.
Contributing to the motion, a member representing Balanga/Billiri Federal Constituency, Gombe State, Ali Isah while supporting the call for investigation of the state of the presidential aircraft, said the development should offer President Tinubu the opportunity to travel by road to enable him to understand the state of road infrastructure across the country.
He said, “I think this will allow our President and other leaders to travel by road and appreciate the state of our roads. This happens all the time in some countries of the world.”
This proposal did not sit well with Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu, who presided over the plenary session in the absence of the Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas.
“Are you saying Mr President, the number one leader should travel around by road?” he asked rhetorically amid support from All Progressives Congress lawmakers.
Isah’s position was nonetheless supported by the Deputy Minority Leader of the House, Kingsley Chinda, who argued that “In Britain, the Prime Minister flies British Airways. I don’t see anything wrong with a public officer using commercial transportation.”
Chinda further advocated the resuscitation of a national career as a way out of the embarrassment.
Chinda also noted that bringing the motion to the floor of the House was not necessary, arguing that the relevant House Committees must investigate any matter under the sun and make their findings known to the House; a position that was supported by Kalu.
The House subsequently stepped down the motion as Satomi informed the press that his committee would swing into action without further delay.
He continued, “I didn’t step down the motion because it lacked merit or support. I stepped it down because I have the power to summon the NSA and the Commandant of the Presidential Air Fleet, which is the prayer in that motion for them to explain.
“The Vice President last week was one hour airborne when the aircraft developed a problem and he had to turn back to land. As I speak with you this afternoon (Wednesday), he used a commercial flight to Kebbi, and the aircraft belongs to an individual.
“The Presidential aircraft belongs to the country. That is why the presidential jet is called the ’Airforce 1’. Therefore, it is a shame!”