Wife of the President, Mrs. Aisha Buhari on Sunday revealed that the Nigerian High Commission in the United Kingdom previously spent £32,000 as landing fees for private jests of former First Ladies.
Mrs. Buhari said this in a statement by her Special Assistant on Media, Adebisi Olumide-Ajayi.
She said the money spent during her visit to the commission was far lesser than what was obtainable in the past.
Her reaction was to a report by SaharaReporters accusing her of fleecing the Nigerian High Commission and abuse of privilege whenever she travels to the UK.
The statement read, “The High Commission has its internal administrative procedure, and it is not within the purview of the wife of the President to ask for diplomatic files.
“Furthermore, that the said memo showed little or no knowledge of Her Excellency’s itinerary proves the simple fact we earlier submitted that she had no direct business with the embassy to warrant the accusation of waste or corruption insinuated in the report.
“Part of the wife of the President’s trips abroad are for her NGO, which is not funded by the Government, and It is not uncommon to have stop over in Britain like any other country as the case may be.
“According her VIP treatment is simple protocol for a personality of her status, which is done all over the world, and at no point was she offered anywhere else.
“The High Commission provided the lounge and Hajiya Buhari was not involved in the transaction.
“This is even a far cry from the £32,000 expended in the past as landing fees for private jets of former first ladies.”
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