The Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) has condemned the Presidency’s decision to purchase new luxury jets for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, describing it as reckless, insensitive, and a clear testament to the government’s detachment from reality. 

Recall that Presidency sources had previously stated that the new jets are intended to enhance the President’s security and comfort during official trips.

However, the purchase has continued to spark outrage among many Nigerians, who view it as an unnecessary expense and a sign of the government’s disconnect from the people.

In a statement released on Monday, signed by Muhammed Ishaq, the party’s Acting National Publicity Secretary, the PRP criticized the government for prioritizing the President’s comfort over the welfare of Nigerians, who are struggling with economic hardship and poverty.

The party questioned the rationale behind the purchase, given the country’s current economic situation, and accused the government of being out of touch with the realities faced by ordinary citizens.

The PRP also noted that the Presidential jet purchased in 2003 is only 19 years old, and questioned why the government is not learning from examples of other countries like China and the US, which have used their presidential jets for 24 and 34 years respectively.

The PRP demanded that the government reconsider this wasteful expenditure and focus on delivering tangible benefits to the Nigerian people.

The party further called on all well-meaning Nigerians to join them in condemning this reckless spending spree and demanding better governance from their leaders.

PRP said, “The government’s decision to purchase new airplanes for the Presidential fleet is a clear testament to their detachment from reality and lack of empathy and accountability.

“They are prioritizing luxury spending over the welfare of the people, despite the country’s crippling economic woes and citizens struggling to make ends meet.

“It is unconscionable that the government is indulging in lavish spending sprees when the economy is in ruins, inflation rates are inching towards 40%, and workers’ wages have not been reviewed.

“They should focus on addressing the pressing issues of poverty, unemployment, and economic stagnation.

“Other countries like China and the US have shown that it is possible to manage with fewer resources. China purchased its Presidential jet from Boeing in 2000 and has been flying it for 24 years, while the US has a Presidential jet manufactured by Boeing that was purchased in 1990 and has been used by six successive American presidents for 34 years.

“We urge the government to remember that they are not serving themselves but the Nigerian people. They should prioritize our needs as a nation and be responsible in spending against dwindling resources.

“We demand that this wasteful expenditure be reconsidered and that the government instead focus on delivering tangible benefits to the Nigerian people.”

A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Dele Momodu, has said President Bola Tinubu will fail and sink Nigeria if his administration continues to engage in ongoing insensitivity and jamborees.

Naija News reports that the former presidential candidate made this known in a post shared on his X handle with the caption, “A Nation in Pain,” stating that only a miracle can avert the unpleasant situation that awaits the country.

Momodu said Tinubu must drastically reduce his administration’s insensitivity and ongoing jamborees so that the country does not sink.

The veteran journalist pointed out that those surrounding Tinubu at the Presidential Villa do not tell him how badly the country has deteriorated.

Momodu said that anybody still expecting anything better from the current administration is only deceiving themselves, adding that the Lagos State template used by Tinubu will not work in Abuja.

He said, “It should be obvious to most reasonable Nigerians that the government of President Bola Tinubu is clearly headed in the wrong direction and that only a miracle can avert the cataclysmic conundrum ahead of us.

“It is the reason that I wish to put it on record that one of Tinubu’s brothers is about to register his opinion and proffer solutions that are not difficult to activate and actualize if a leader ever meant well.

“Inside the villa, the President is being hero-worshipped. Those around him are painting a picture of ‘things are getting better, only opposition people are complaining and grumbling…’ Truth is, nothing is working.

“Those who wish to remain in the good books of Tinubu can continue to delude him and themselves.

“It is not always because of desperate needs, but due to the despicable greed of man. They were mentored by him and largely emboldened by the sheer audacity of the wealth that paved his way to maximum power.

“Let those who still care to plead with these people to have mercy on Nigeria. No matter how long Tinubu spends, he will fail spectacularly and sink Nigeria, unless he can drastically reduce the insensitivity and the ongoing jamborees in his government… Sadly, he doesn’t seem inclined that way….”

Former Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, Cardinal John Onaiyekan, has declared that clergymen must continue to speak the truth to those in power, adding that silence means compliance.

According to him, it is wrong to keep quiet in the face of injustice, even if it attracts criticisms from politicians and those in government, noting that politics is for everyone and not just politicians.

The clergyman made this submission over the weekend while speaking at the inauguration of the Catholic Social Teaching, CST, programme at the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria, CSN, in Abuja.

He stressed that clerics must do the right thing at all times because it is part of their responsibilities.

“As Catholic Bishops, we are often interviewed and make powerful political statements. Nobody can stop us from doing that because it is part of our job. We have a responsibility to teach the right things, even if it means facing criticism from politicians.

“We cannot afford to remain silent in the face of injustice. Silence is complicity, and we must speak out against injustice wherever we see it.

“Whenever we speak nicely, politicians hail us, but when we criticize them and warn them that they are not doing well, they get angry with us, accusing us of dabbling in politics. But politics is not for politicians alone; it’s for everyone.

“We teach the right things, but it’s up to those concerned to take the teaching and work on it. We don’t have the facility to force politicians to do the right thing; we only have the word of mouth, our message.

“Even Jesus taught for three years, and it was the same people he taught who rallied around and crucified Him on the cross. They heard His message, but they didn’t take it. It’s the same today: those who listen to good wisdom will do well, and the people will profit from them,” the Emeritus Archbishop said

Former Senator representing Kaduna Central Senatorial District, Shehu Sani, has alleged that the recent visit by certain prominent Northern politicians to former President Muhammadu Buhari was an attempt to undermine President Bola Tinubu in 2027.

Naija News reports that the Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 election, Atiku Abubakar, on Saturday, visited former President Muhammadu Buhari in his hometown, Daura, Katsina State.

It was learnt that the two held a closed-door meeting in the company of some associates, including the immediate past governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, now a senator representing Sokoto South.

Similarly, former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, paid a visit to ex-President Muhammadu Buhari in Daura, Katsina State

In response to the recent visitation, Sani described the move as an effort to regroup Northern political forces for the next general election, predicting that it would ultimately fail.

Sani criticized the attempt to revive Buhari’s political influence and mobilize support, cautioning against stirring Arewa sentiment without regard for the potential chaos it could cause.

On his verified Facebook page, Sani remarked that Buhari, who led Nigeria for eight years, left the North in a worse state than he found it, and that it is too soon for people to forget this reality.

He wrote, “The recent visits by some prominent Northern politicians to Daura appear to be the usual Eid homage, but looking deeper and beyond the facade, it’s surreptitiously a new attempt to build a strong northern alliance using ex-President Buhari as a rallying point to challenge and evict President Tinubu’s government in 2027.

“It’s a regrouping of Northern political forces for the next general election. A project that will eventually kiss the dust.

“They want to resurrect Buhari’s political charm, fanaticism, and mobilize the gullible to another hollow and bewildering end. They want to stock up and light up the Arewa sentiment without considering the inferno it would eventually generate.

“By the time he left power, poverty and insecurity were at their peak more than at any time in Nigeria’s history.

“They had power and wasted it; what do they want to do with it again?”

Sani emphasized that a Southerner has been in power for just one year, and it is too early for Northern elites to start plotting.

He noted that the South did not undertake such actions against Buhari during his tenure. Sani warned that these efforts could destabilize Nigeria’s fragile unity and damage the democratic process.

He condemned the Northern politicians’ obsession with power, stating that opposition to Tinubu’s policies and administration is a democratic right, but inciting Northern sentiments for political gain is a perilous venture.

“A Southerner has been in power for just one year. It’s too early for the desperate and power-hungry northern elite to start plotting. The South never did that to Buhari. Their intended action has the capacity to ruin the democratic process and wreck the fragile unity of the country when the South is awakened to this reality.

“Their obsession with power is condemnable. Opposition to Tinubu from the point of policies, promises, and programs of his administration is a democratic right of any Nigerian. People have the right to speak and criticize the government.

“But attempts to whip up Northern sentiments to achieve their political ends is a dangerous political experiment and expedition at this material time. No serious southerner challenged Buhari for eight years; these power-drunk Northern politicians are dragging the region into a new political journey through a landmine.

“Buhari’s reign ensured nepotistic placement, installation, and dominance of Northerners at strategic positions of authority and power for eight years. Results had shown that they only enriched themselves, pillaged the economy of the country, and pauperized our country.

“The Daura homage of the disgruntled and the obsessed will fail. Our people in the North should reject these faces and their plots.

“They have nothing to offer. From the abandoned Baro Port, Ajaokuta, Lake Chad Basin refilling, and Mambilla hydropower, they failed. They came to power when the North was in the hands of terrorists and left it in the joint hands of terrorists and bandits. The Northern Talakawa should reject their antics,” he said.