Ndume reveals that presidential yacht deal is completed and delivered

Senator Ali Ndume, the Senate Chief Whip, has disclosed that the presidential yacht deal in the supplementary budget has been signed and delivered already.

He made this disclosure in an interview with Arise Television on Friday.

He said, “The deal has been signed and delivered, but not paid, and that’s what brought the inclusion of the amount (N5 billion) in the supplementary budget.”

The House of Representatives had turned down the federal government’s plan to purchase a presidential yacht, which is expected to cost N5 billion in the supplementary budget.

The plan to buy the presidential yacht has sparked public outrage, as Nigerians have slammed the plan as lavish spending on luxury amid the economic crisis in the country.

President Tinubu had presented a supplementary budget to the National Assembly for approval, with the planned purchase of the yacht listed under the Nigerian Navy’s proposed capital expenditure of $53 million.

However, the presidency has denied that the item named ‘Presidential Yacht, as found in the 2023 Supplementary Appropriation Bill, is for Tinubu’s personal use.

The presidency said the naval boat has such a name “because of the high-level security features.”

“What was named as a presidential yacht in the budget is an operational Naval boat with specialised security gadgets suitable for high-profile operational inspection and not for the use of the President.”

This was stated by Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, in a statement on Thursday.

The Presidency’s statement, titled “The facts on the Naval boat in the 2023 supplementary budget,” reads, “The Naval boat was ordered by the Navy under the previous administration.

“President Tinubu has consistently said that government is a continuum, as he inherited both the assets and liabilities of past administrations.

“The payment request for the boat was part of the committed obligation submitted by the office of the Chief of Naval Staff to the Ministry of Defence, the Presidency noted, adding that “the total of the submitted requests was in excess of N200 billion, out of which N62 billion was approved by the President.”