Communications Director at the Presidency, Eugene Arhin has announced that the government has started the process of procuring a new bigger presidential jet.
“Government is already in the process of acquiring a bigger jet for use,” he said at a press briefing at the Jubilee House on Monday.
Director of Communications at the presidency, Eugene Arhin, says the Defence Minister, Dominic Nitiwul, has already begun the processes for Ghana to procure the new jet.
Mr Arhin was answering a question on whether the government intended buying a bigger aircraft to accommodate the President and his entourage on official foreign trips as the current presidential jet had proven inadequate for the purpose.
He explained that the move to get a bigger fit-for-purpose aircraft was part of a cost-saving measure on the travels of the President and other key state functionaries.
Mr Arhin did not give the specifics of the aircraft deal but said the Defence Minister would shed light on the development at the appropriate time.
The President’s foreign travels have generated discussions on the airwaves and social media lately, with some Ghanaians asking why the President has to fly in hired private aircraft when the country owned a functional presidential jet.
But the Defence Minister, Dominic Nitiwul told Parliament that the configuration of the current Presidential jet, a falcon 900EX purchased during the era of former President John Kufuor, did not meet the travel needs and security of the President.
