TINUBU DEPARTS ABUJA FOR THREE-STATE TOUR ABOARD OBASANJO-ERA JET PREVIOUSLY LISTED FOR SALE
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By: Sefiu Ajape
President Bola Tinubu on Saturday departed Abuja for Borno, Bauchi and Lagos aboard the 20-year-old Boeing 737 Business Jet, which was listed for sale in July but later delisted after attracting poor buyer interest and low offers.
Ahead of the President’s visit, the Borno State Police Command announced the deployment of tactical teams, surveillance units and Explosive Ordnance Disposal operatives to strengthen security across the state.
Tinubu took off from the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, at 11:45am, beginning a multi-state working visit and holiday tour.
The trip will see him inaugurate projects in Maiduguri, pay a condolence visit to the family of the late Sheikh Dahiru Bauchi in Bauchi, and spend the Yuletide season in Lagos.
His use of the Obasanjo-era jet, with tail number 5N-FGT, signalled the aircraft’s quiet return to active service after an earlier attempt by the Federal Government to sell it.
The government had removed the jet from an international sales platform run by US-based JetHQ in early December, following months of unsuccessful efforts to dispose of the aging aircraft.
The Boeing 737 BBJ was acquired in 2005 for $43m during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo and served successive governments until August 2024, when the Tinubu administration received a refurbished Airbus A330-200.
It was first put up for sale in July 2025 as part of the administration’s cost-cutting measures. That same month, the aircraft was used to transport the remains of late former President Muhammadu Buhari from London to Daura for burial.
It was gathered that the jet was delisted after prospective buyers submitted offers as low as $10m, far below government expectations, despite the aircraft undergoing partial refurbishment and major C1–C2 inspections at AMAC Aerospace in Basel, Switzerland, in July 2024.
In a statement issued on Friday night by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, it was disclosed that Tinubu’s first stop would be Maiduguri, where he will inaugurate projects executed by the Babagana Zulum administration in partnership with the Federal Government.
The President will also attend the wedding ceremony of Sadeeq Sheriff, son of former Borno State Governor, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, and his bride, Hadiza Kam Salem.
From Maiduguri, Tinubu will proceed to Bauchi to condole with the state government and the family of the late Sheikh Dahiru Bauchi, the respected Muslim cleric and leader of the Tijjaniyya Muslim Brotherhood, who died on November 27 at the age of 101.
After the condolence visit, the President will travel to Lagos to spend the Christmas and New Year holidays.
He is also expected to serve as Guest of Honour at the Eyo Festival scheduled for December 27 at Tafawa Balewa Square.
The festival will celebrate notable personalities, including the President’s late mother, Alhaja Abibatu Mogaji, as well as former Lagos State Governors, Alhaji Lateef Jakande and Chief Michael Otedola.
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