The former Defence Minister says Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa will come to regret some of his past comments on former President Akufo-Addo’s foreign travels once he experiences the realities of diplomacy.

Dominic Nitiwul speaking on Joy News’ PM Express on Wednesday, January 22, said the North Tongu MP’s criticisms of the ex-president’s use of chartered flights were made without a full understanding of the demands of high-level diplomacy and national security considerations.

“Honourable Okudzeto Ablakwa will come to realise too early and history will judge all of us that what he did - publicising Akufo-Addo’s foreign travels on chartered flights - if he knew that he was going to be Foreign Minister, he would not have done what he did,” the Bimbilla MP said.

According to him, once Ablakwa assumes a ministerial role and engages in diplomatic missions, he will recognise the complexities involved in presidential travel decisions.

“His own staff will tell him, ‘I think you made a mistake.’ When he begins to travel and move and diplomacy catches up with him, he will realise that some of the things he said were not things he should have been saying, but he’s done them already,” Mr Nitiwul added.

The former Minister also dismissed criticisms that President John Mahama’s decision to use a private jet instead of the existing presidential jet was a novelty, stating that Mr Mahama also chartered private jets during his earlier tenure.

“I know, for example, when President Mahama was in power between 2013 and 2016, he did charter flights, on several occasions, private jets to use.

"You can ask him and he will confirm it for you. He has used Global Express before, so I don’t want us to have that conversation,” he asserted.

The former Defence Minister called for an end to the politicisation of the presidential jet, urging Ghanaians to focus on more pressing national issues such as cost-cutting in other areas of governance.

“Ghana is so important as a country in West Africa, in Africa, and the world for us to be talking about whether the President should have chartered or shouldn’t have chartered a jet,” he said.

Dominic Nitiwul emphasised the importance of prioritising national security when it comes to the President’s travels, pointing out that no country takes the security of its Commander-in-Chief lightly.

“No country jokes with the Commander-in-Chief of their armed forces,” he stressed, adding that efforts to cut costs should extend beyond just the President’s transportation.

He noted that the current administration is carefully reviewing travel arrangements and other expenditures to ensure efficiency without compromising security.

“If it’s about cutting costs and trying to make sure that the people of Ghana get it, there are several other areas where we can cut costs,” Mr Nitiwul said.