Nigerians have commended President Bola Tinubu for slashing the size of his entourage for domestic and international travels by 60 per cent, in a move to cut excessive travel spending.
The measures apply to all federal ministries, departments and agencies, the Office of the President, Office of the Vice President and their wives.
The President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, who said this, also said that the president will no longer accept or allow huge security delegations to be following him from Abuja, which attract massive bills with respect to estacode and duty allowances.
This decision comes five weeks after Nigerians criticised the Tinubu administration for sponsoring at least 1,114 delegates to the United Nation’s annual climate summit, COP28, in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates.
Although the Presidency said it sponsored only 422 delegates, reports say it spent N2.78bn on air fares and estacodes.
In their first seven months in office, President Tinubu and Vice Kashim Shettima visited 16 countries, collectively spent 91 days in foreign engagements.
Checks revealed that President Tinubu has so far visited Paris, France (twice); London, the United Kingdom; Bissau, Guinea-Bissau (twice); Nairobi, Kenya; Porto Norvo, Benin Republic; New Delhi, India; Abu Dhabi and Dubai, the United Arab Emirates; New York, the United States of America, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Berlin, German, spending 55 days.
Meanwhile, VP Shettima represented him in Italy, Russia, South Africa, Cuba, China and the US, logging 36 days abroad in 2023.
While the Presidency defended these trips as vital for attracting foreign direct investment into Nigeria, critics question the economic impact, particularly the size of the entourage.
Revealing more details about the directive, Ngelale said, “The President has approved a new limit of 25 staff members to accompany him on domestic trips.
“The Office of the First Lady is now limited to 10 staff members to accompany her on official trips within the country.
“The Vice President will be limited to 15 members of staff on official trips within the country, while his wife will be limited to 10 members of staff on officials within the country.”
Given that the President travels with an army of security personnel across states, Ngelale said henceforth, “the security outfits within states, be it police, the DSS or branches of the military, will frontline his protective detail when he travels to those states.”
This also applies to the Office of the VP, the First Lady, and the VP’s wife.
He explained that the number of persons allowed to accompany each officer on international trips is less than those allowed on domestic trips because “international trips are far more expensive across the board.”
