Akufo-Addo is the first President to fly a luxury private jet – Okudzeto Ablakwa jabs Afenyo Markin

He said Afenyo-Markin’s assertion that the President is not the first to charter a private jet is totally untrue.

According to the Minority spokesperson on Foreign Affairs, President Akufo-Addo’s predecessors never used luxury private jets.

“Let’s put out facts, he (Afenyo-Markin) is peddling untruths, that this is not the first time a president is going for a luxury chartered flight. It is the first time. “President Kufuor always flew commercial, he never chartered an aircraft, that is the record.

President Mills never chartered an aircraft. That is the fact. President Mahama had occasion to charter an aircraft when the Falcon had been sent for servicing, that is a fact and he did not charter a luxury VIP jet,” he added.

Ablakwa, in a statement yesterday said the President’s current trip to the US is costing the Ghanaian taxpayer $660,000 by the hiring of a private jet.

In a statement, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) lawmaker said the President opted for luxury on the trip.

His statement read in part: “I can authoritatively confirm without a scintilla of doubt or any equivocation for that matter that President Akufo-Addo on his current trip to the United States of America has again chartered the same ultra luxury aircraft he used to the UK and Germany — the Luxembourg-based luxury jet registered LX-DIO and operated by Global Jet Luxembourg. Same Boeing 737-900ER BBJ3 with Manufacturer Serial Number (MSN) 62515 and Line Number 5659.

"The blue and white LX-DIO’s features have not changed: 19-seater luxury jet which has a HEX code 4D0213 which is configured VIP, has 2x CFMI engines and was delivered to the current operators in November 2015.”