The wife of the President, Aisha Buhari, has defended her decision to share the video of her daughter, Hanan Buhari, inside the Presidential jet, on her Facebook page, saying it is not an attempt to taunt Nigerians but to boost the morale of a distraught child.
In what many Nigerian termed defiance on the part of the first family over the public condemnation of the President’s daughter using a Presidential jet for a private function, Mrs Buhari, on Monday, posted on her Facebook page a 55 seconds video of her daughter’s activities while on the trip to Bauchi.
Hanan Aisha Buhari was on a study tour of Bauchi Emirate last Thursday as part of the requirements for a Master’s programme in a foreign university.
In his reaction to the video, the Special Adviser on Media to Mrs Buhari, Abdullahi Aliyu, said Mrs Buhari’s action was simply aimed at explaining the daughter’s business in Bauchi.
Speaking in an interview, Mr Aliyu said that the mother must have shared the video to lift her daughter’s spirit.
He said: “I must say that the First Lady can’t taunt Nigerians.
“For those who fly the British Airways very well, they would know that except the President is on a trip outside the country, she goes on commercial flight”.
The Media Aide added that the first family only fly Presidential jets while on trips within Nigeria in order to avoid the inconveniences other travellers may be subjected to.
“You can imagine the inconveniences the security operatives around the first family could subject other travellers to if it were to be a commercial jet. So, the truth is that the First Lady never meant to taunt anyone but rather, she is trying to explain what the trip was all about and to boost the marale of a daughter who had been subjected to tirades,” he added.
He said that the use of appurtenances of office of the President including Presidential Air Fleet has changed significantly for good since Mr Buhari assumed office.
