Faulty presidential aircraft forces VP Shettima to cancel US trip

Vice President Kashim Shettima was on Sunday forced to cancel his trip to the United States where he was scheduled to represent President Bola Tinubu at the 2024 US-Africa Business Summit, due to a fault with his aircraft.

Stanley Nkwocha, media aide to Mr Shettima disclosed this in a statement on Monday.

He said the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, will now represent President Tinubu at the event.

Mr Nkwocha had in a statement on Sunday said the vice president would depart Abuja that evening for Dallas, Texas to represent the president, who has been outside Nigeria for over one week.

The statement said Mr Shettima would speak at a plenary session on Navigating Africa’s Energy Future as well as chair a session dedicated to promoting the ‘invest in Nigeria’ initiative.

The VP was also expected to attend other meetings and engagements on the sideline of the summit before returning to Nigeria.

But Mr Nkwocha, in his Monday statement, said Mr Shettima was unable to make the trip due to a technical fault with his aircraft.

He said the vice president was forced to make a detour on the advice of the Presidential Air Fleet.

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“Vice President Kashim Shettima who was originally scheduled to represent the President was unable to make the trip following a technical fault with his aircraft, forcing him to make a detour on the advice of the Presidential Air Fleet,” the statement said.

Read the full statement

STATE HOUSE PRESS RELEASE

Minister of Foreign Affairs To Now Represent President Tinubu at US-Africa Summit

The Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, will now represent President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the 2024 US-Africa Business Summit in Dallas, Texas.

Vice President Kashim Shettima who was originally scheduled to represent the President was unable to make the trip following a technical fault with his aircraft, forcing him to make a detour on the advice of the Presidential Air Fleet.

The Vice President will carry on with other national duties.

The high-profile summit, taking place at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, will bring together political and business leaders from across Africa, the United States, and other regions. It features high-level dialogues, networking sessions, and plenaries.

Among the African heads of state expected are President Joseph Boakai of Liberia, President Lazarus Chakwera of Malawi, President Joao Lourenço of Angola, President Mokgweetsi E.K. Masisi of Botswana, President José Maria Neves of Cabo Verde, and Deputy Prime Minister Nthomeng Majara of Lesotho.

The US-Africa Business Summit aims to foster economic cooperation and explore investment opportunities between the United States and African countries.

Stanley Nkwocha
Senior Special Assistant to The President on Media & Communications
(Office of The Vice President)
6th May, 2024