VICE President, Kashim Shettima, has been forced to abort his planned trip to the United States (US), where he was scheduled to represent President Bola Tinubu at the US-Africa Summit in Dallas, Texas, as the presidential jet he was travelling in developed technical fault midair.
Instead, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar will represent Tinubu at the event.
Shettima, who was initially set to accompany the President on the trip, had to alter his plans and take an alternative route based on the advice of the Presidential Air Fleet.
The Vice President would carry on with other national duties, especially as the unusual President is out of the country and the absence of the two leaders in the country was already generating controversy and apprehension.
The Presidency, in a statement on Monday, May 6, signed by the Shettima’s spokesperson, Stanley Nkwocha, titled, ‘Minister of Foreign Affairs To Now Represent President Tinubu at US-Africa Summit,’ said: “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.”
Details of the particular aircraft Shettima was travelling in was not stated, but there were indications that the plane is the Gulfstream V aircraft often used by the country’s vice president.
The statement was silent on the nature of the fault, but stated that the vice president had since returned to Abuja and “will carry on with other national duties.”
His predecessor, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, had used the same aircraft while in office between 2015 and last year.
The Summit, hosted by Corporate Council on Africa, which is holding at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, would be bringing together political and business leaders from Africa, the US and other regions.
It will feature high-level dialogues, networking sessions and plenaries and is expected to be attended by African leaders, including Presidents Joseph Boakai (Liberia); Lazarus Chakwera (Malawi); Joao Lourenço (Angola; Mokgweetsi E. K. Masisi (Botswana); José Maria Neves (Cape Verde) and Deputy Prime Minister of Lesotho, Nthomeng Majara.
The Summit aims to foster economic cooperation and explore investment opportunities between the US and African countries.
Besides the plenary, the statement said Tuggar was expected to speak at the Roundtable on African Infrastructure Investment with a focus on impact and returns; a panel on agribusiness, focusing on transiting “from food insecurity to thriving agribusinesses,” at a plenary session on Navigating Africa’s Energy Future, as well as chair a session dedicated to promoting the ‘invest in Nigeria’ initiative.
He is also expected to attend other meetings and engagements on the sideline of the Summit.
