VP Shettima’s plane damaged at JFK, cancels Commonwealth Summit trip

…Tinubu approves ministerial delegation to represent Nigeria in Samoa

By Kunle Sanni

Vice President Kashim Shettima’s attendance at the 2024 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Samoa has been canceled after a foreign object struck his plane at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York, damaging the cockpit windscreen, according to a statement from the Nigerian presidency.

Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, disclosed that the incident occurred during a brief stopover, preventing Shettima’s onward travel to Samoa.

In response, President Bola Tinubu quickly authorized a ministerial delegation to represent Nigeria at the summit. Led by Environment Minister Balarabe Abass Lawal, the delegation will engage in discussions and activities on behalf of Nigeria at the conference, which runs from October 21 to October 26 in Apia, Samoa.

Following the incident, Vice President Shettima and Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar have returned to Nigeria while repairs to the aircraft are underway.