Presidential jet unfit for use – Omane Boamah responds to critics

Defence Minister, Dr. Edward Omane Boamah has disclosed that Ghana’s presidential jet is currently out of service due to significant mechanical issues, including a corroded fuel tank.

His statement came in response to criticism from members of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) following Vice President Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang’s return to Ghana from medical treatment in the United Kingdom.

Some NPP members had questioned why the Vice President used a chartered private jet instead of the presidential aircraft.

The Vice President returned to Ghana on Thursday, 22 May, to a warm welcome following weeks of medical treatment in the UK.

In a Facebook post, Dr. Boamah respond to the critics, revealing that the presidential jet was grounded during the previous Akufo-Addo administration and has remained unserviceable due to neglect.

According to Dr. Boamah, the aircraft is currently undergoing extensive maintenance, repair, and overhaul abroad and is expected to become “fairly usable” only after approximately three more months of technical work.

The post noted, “Let the NPP that suffered the most humiliating defeat in recent memory in both the Presidential and Parliamentary elections know this. Akufo-Addo’s administration rundown the Presidential jet. Among others, its fuel tank is even corroded. The Presidential jet has been in the ‘hospital’ abroad for maintenance, repair and overhaul and may be put in fairly usable state after three months of ‘therapy’. The Presidential jet is unfit for use presently.”