Navy confirms delivery of presidential yacht

The Nigerian Navy has confirmed that the presidential yacht that sparked public outrage is in its custody.

The NN confirmed on Saturday that the yacht was “ordered” by the former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration and has been delivered to Nigeria.

“Yes, it is in Nigeria,” Adedotun Ayo-Vaughan, the director of naval information, told TheCable.

The yacht had a budgetary allocation of N5 billion in the supplementary budget under the capital expenditure of the navy.

However, the national assembly rejected the appropriation for the yacht and reallocated it to the students’ loan programme on Thursday, when they passed the N2 trillion supplementary budget.

The senate chief whip, Ali Ndume, had said on Friday that the yacht was already delivered but not paid for.

The purchase of the presidential yacht had drawn criticism from Nigerians, who demanded a reduction in the cost of governance amid the economic hardship in the country.

When asked about the fate of the yacht, the naval spokesperson said: “Those are issues that are beyond us”.

He said the yacht was approved but there was no cash backing.

“The navy is not using it at all. It was just delivered. Decisions will have to be taken at all levels. We are just awaiting instructions,” he said.