• VP Cancels CHOGOM Trip

• Safiu Kehinde

Vice President Kashim Shettima’s trip to Samoa to represent Nigeria at the 2024 Commonwealth Heads of Government Summit has been cancelled after a strange object reportedly hit his plane during a stopover at JFK Airport, New York.

Confirming the incident, Special Adviser to the President, Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said in a statement issued on Thursday that the unidentified object damaged the cockpit’s windscreen of the plane.

As a result of the unexpected development, the Vice President’s trip to Samoa has been suspended.

In his stead, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu appointed a ministerial delegation led by the Minister of Environment, Balarabe Abass Lawal, to represent the country at the summit in Samoa.

“President Tinubu, acting promptly, has approved a ministerial delegation to represent Nigeria at the summit in Samoa, capital of Apia, while the plane’s repair has commenced.

“The delegation, which will now represent Nigeria at the 2024 Commonwealth Heads Of Government Meeting in Samoa, is being led by the Minister of Environment, Balarabe Abass Lawal,” said the statement.

The summit, which began on the Pacific island on October 21, will end on October 26.

Meanwhile, Shettima and Amb. Yusuf Tuggar, Foreign Affairs Minister, have left New York for Nigeria.