PRESIDENCY'S FOREIGN TRIPS GULP N37.6 BILLION IN JUST THREE YEARS - REPORT

The Presidency reportedly spent N37.64 billion on presidential trips, logistics, foreign exchange and other travel-related expenses between June 2023 and April 2026, according to an analysis of GovSpend records.

This comes as President Bola Tinubu on Sunday departed Abuja for Europe on a three-week annual vacation, with London as his first destination. The trip will bring his foreign travel tally since assuming office to 52.

Presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, said Tinubu is expected back after the working vacation to “join the hectic campaign for the January 2027 elections.”

According to official travel records analysed by Daily Trust, Tinubu has spent about 261 days outside Nigeria, visiting at least 30 countries in 51 foreign trips since May 29, 2023. France has reportedly been his most frequent destination, followed by London.

GovSpend records showed travel-related spending of N9.18bn in the second half of 2023, N25.26bn in 2024, N2.7bn in 2025 and N477.4m between January and April 2026.

The spending peaked in 2024, driven largely by foreign exchange allocations and funding for the Presidential Air Fleet.

Meanwhile, records also showed that $553,884, valued at N700.7m at applicable exchange rates, was released for overseas trips involving First Lady Oluremi Tinubu between 2023 and 2024.

Reacting, Transparency and Accountability Group President, Ayo Ologun, questioned the legal basis for funding official foreign trips by the First Lady.

“Because her office is not recognised by the law, if it is established that public money was spent on supposed official travels, the question should be: what is the duty?” he said.

“If it is spent on the wife of the President, that is abuse of power,” Ologun added, calling for scrutiny and investigation into the expenditure.

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