Ajuri Ngelale, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, disclosed this information while briefing State House Correspondents at the Presidential Villa on Tuesday, stating that only 20 personnel will now accompany the President on foreign trips.

The President has also limited the number of officials accompanying the Vice President, Kashim Shettima, on international trips to five.

Ngelale clarified that the directive extends to the Offices of the first lady, wife of the vice president, and all ministries, departments, and agencies.

This development surfaces roughly a month after the Nigerian government faced backlash for spending a fortune on a 1,411-member delegation to COP-28 amidst the country’s economic challenges, including a high debt profile and declining revenue sources.

What the presidency said:
“President Bola Tinubu has approved that anywhere he travels within this country he will no longer accept or allow huge security delegations to be following him from Abuja, which attracts massive bills with respect to estacode and duty allowances from now on,”

“He has approved a massive cost-cutting exercise that will cut across the entire Federal Government of Nigeria and the Offices of the President himself, the Vice President and the Office of the First Lady. It will be conducted in the following fashion.”

In terms of local trips, the President has approved a new limit of 25 members of staff to accompany him on domestic trips within the country.

Source: Business Insider