The government announced plans on November 13 to purchase three new helicopters for the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) and also purchase one new jet for the president, just a few days after the investigation report on the helicopter crash that claimed the lives of eight gallant Ghanaian men.

Speaking on the floor of Parliament on Wednesday, December 3, the Deputy Minister of Defence, Ernest Brogya Genfi, laid before the house the contract agreement of the government and the companies from whom the purchase will be made.

The Second Deputy Speaker, Andrew Asiamah Amoako, who was presiding, referred them to the joint committees of Defence and Interior for consideration and report. He also directed it to the leadership of the Finance Committee for consideration and report to the House.

The first is the contract agreement between the government of Ghana, represented by the Ministry of Defence, and Airbus Helicopters (SAS), France, for an amount of €125.97 million for the supply of one H160 and three H175 helicopters for the GAF.

The second is the sale and purchase contract agreement between the government of Ghana and Dassault.

Following the approval of the GH₵1.70 billion budget for the jet and helicopters, Minister for Foreign Affairs, who also doubles as the North Tongu Member of Parliament (MP), Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, addressed the house saying that, the Minority could be certain that if President John Dramani Mahama “starts or even attempts” to charter ultra-luxury jets like his predecessor did, “you will certainly hear my voice”.

During the erstwhile government’s tenure, President Akufo-Addo announced his intention to purchase a new jet, which was heavily criticised by Ablakwa as insensitive, given the country's hardships and poor financial state at the time. He embarked on media tours and made several statements as to why purchasing a presidential jet was not right at the time.

Consequently, following his silence on the jet the president is set to purchase, the Minority has accused him of double standards, citing that his strong stance against Akufo-Addo’s plan was politically motivated and far from objective.

In response to them, he said, “You are not hearing my voice now because what I used to complain about is not happening”.

According to him, a comparison of the budget the Akufo-Addo-led administration presented and that of what Ato Forson has at the Finance Ministry, the former government’s budget could have bought Ghana “ a brand new jet”.

“So you should be commending me, and you should actually be apologising to the people of this country that if President Akufo-Addo had listened to the honourable Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, we would not have wasted resources as we have done. “

“President Mahama has now put us on a prudent path where instead of just chattering and wasting taxpayer resources, he is rather going to engage in an investment that will serve the Ghana Armed Forces well,” he said.

Supporting the approval of the budget estimates for the Foreign Affairs Ministry earlier, the Second Deputy Minority Leader, Habib Iddrisu, said the Minority was of the view that the ministry should be given enough resources.

He said the Foreign Minister asked for over GH₵3 billion as the budget for his ministry in 2026, yet he was only given less than 50 percent of what he asked for.

“But the majority of the money, over GH₵13 billion, is going to be used to buy four helicopters and two luxury jets- one long reach and one medium range- and you have said nothing about it.

“But you were very vocal that the President is flying first class, but we think they should cancel the money for the four helicopters and the two luxury jets that they will buy and give the money to the Foreign Affairs Minister,” he said.

Accusing Mr Ablakwa of being very quiet on the purchase of the helicopters and presidential jets, Mr Iddrisu drew the attention of the Foreign Affairs Minister that “anytime he ever finds himself here in 2029, he should know in future prosperity will catch up with him”.

Meanwhile, Ghana’s presidential jet touched down on Monday, November 10. The jet, France’s Dassault Falcon Service, had been in Le Bourget, France, for the past month for its mandatory 24-month and 1,600-flying-hour inspection since March. The Falcon 900EX EASy with registration number 9G-EXE remained grounded, with new faults discovered each time it was scheduled to be dispatched back home.

However, Vice President of IMANI Africa, Bright Simons, in an X (formerly Twitter) post on Sunday, November 16, shared that the jet had arrived in Accra, Ghana.

Parts of his post read: “Ghana’s presidential jet has been delivered safely back into the custody of the Ghana Air Force since Monday, the 10th of November. Exactly 8 months after it was sent to the Dassault Falcon Service MRO base at Paris Le Bourget (PLB).”

He reiterated Mr Brogya’s explanation in Parliament earlier that the faults that were detected required manufacturer-level intervention and prolonged the maintenance schedule, as the repairs could only be executed at that specific Dassault-authorised site.

“Whilst at PLB, it underwent a MANDATORY 24-month and 1600-hour technical inspection. During this extensive inspection, severe defects affecting the fuel tank and a turbofan were discovered, triggering prolonged repairs that could only be done with manufacturer assistance at that specific Dassault facility.”

Following this, “all the complex repairs, final tests (including leak tests, engine ground runs, and acceptance flights) have been completed. The long delay in completing the repairs was due to some apparent difficulty sourcing certain OEM-certified spare parts. The aircraft has, however, been given the all clear by DFS now.”

However, the Bureau of Public Safety (BSP) has called for an independent certification and audit into the airworthiness of Ghana’s presidential jet, which has reportedly returned from maintenance.

The Bureau of Public Safety (BPS) in Ghana is a non-profit civil society organisation that advocates for public safety, security, health, and environmental protection.

Speaking in an interview with Channel One Newsroom on Sunday, November 16, the Executive Secretary of BSP, Nana Yaw Akwada warned that despite the safety confirmations and certifications by the French aircraft company that conducted the maintenance works on the the Falcon 900EX EASy with registration number 9G-EXE, there is a need for an independent and fully transparent certification before declaring the aircraft safe for presidential use.

“It is good news to hear that the jet is back, but before we can make any concrete statement on its safety or otherwise, it’s very important that we have an independent certification body to let us understand objectively what was established in relation to what the Ghana Armed Forces communicated to us,” he said.