Dr Edward Omane Boamah is the Minister of Defence
The Minister of Defence, Dr Edward Omane Boamah, has taken on Vincent Ekow Assafuah, the Member of Parliament for Old Tafo, over his claims regarding Vice President Prof Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang’s return to the country aboard a chartered flight.
The Old Tafo MP, Vincent Ekow Assafuah, in a Facebook post on May 22, 2025, shared details of the Vice President’s flight on Facebook, including the schedule, date, travel duration, and other related information.
According to the information shared by the lawmaker, the aircraft, VistaJet 836, departed from Farnborough in the United Kingdom on Thursday, May 22, 2025, at 10:18 BST and arrived in Accra, Ghana, on the same day at 3:40 GMT, with a total flight duration of 6 hours and 22 minutes.
In his post, along with a series of others, the MP questioned the government’s expenditure on the said chartered flight, which he claims is a private jet, and called for transparency and accountability regarding the cost involved.
In response to Assafuah’s claims, Dr Omane Boamah accused the previous New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration which Assafuah is a member of, of mismanaging the country’s official presidential jet, the Falcon, to the point of causing significant damage, including corrosion of the aircraft’s fuel tank.
“Let the NPP that suffered the most humiliating defeat in recent memory in both the Presidential and Parliamentary elections know this: Akufo-Addo’s administration rundown the Presidential jet. Among others, its fuel tank is even corroded,” he said.
Dr Omane Boamah further indicated that the country’s official presidential jet, the Falcon, is currently deemed unfit for use by the Presidency and is currently undergoing maintenance abroad.
He noted that the repairs may require an extended period before the aircraft is deemed suitable for official use.
“The Presidential jet has been in the ‘hospital’ abroad for maintenance, repair and overhaul and may be put in fairly usable state after three months of ‘therapy’. The Presidential jet is unfit for use presently,” he added.
Assafuah’s comments follow the Vice President’s return to Ghana from the United Kingdom following a period of medical leave abroad.
Her arrival marks the end of her medical recovery, during which she received treatment and rest as advised by her doctors.
Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang was warmly received by President John Dramani Mahama and First Lady Lordina Mahama, along with close aides and senior government officials.
Among those present at the airport were Chief of Staff Julius Debrah, the Vice President’s Chief of Staff Alex Segbefia, the Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church, and members of the Vice President’s family.
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