Nigeria is expecting 12 Tucano fighter planes from the US as part of efforts towards fighting insecurity in the country. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele said this on Tuesday while fielding questions at the end of a two-day Monetary Policy Committee meeting in Abuja.
“About three years ago, the Federal Government and the United States signed a pact that resulted in a government-to-government acquisition of military equipment out of which we are expecting twelve Tucano aircraft or fighter planes that will help combat insecurity,” the apex bank boss explained during the event where he also expressed optimism that the country will overcome its security challenges. “I am aware that six of them are coming to the country in the months of July and August.”
The CBN governor’s comment corroborated a statement earlier made by the presidency on the arrival of the Tucano aircraft. “Nigerian pilots and maintenance personnel are training on these planes. Currently, the construction is ongoing, which will house the aircraft,” Mr Garba Shehu, one of the President’s spokespersons tweeted in March, three years after the Federal Government (February 2018) confirmed that it had placed an order for 12 Super Tucano aircraft at a cost of $496 million.
