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Claim: A viral post on Facebook alleges that President John Dramani Mahama and North Tongu MP Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa rented a private jet at £20,000 per hour to travel to Japan and Singapore.

Verdict: False! Mahama did not rent a private jet for his trip. Evidence reviewed by DUBAWA shows that he flew on an Emirates commercial flight from Accra to Japan on August 17, 2025. There is no record of a private jet rental, and the claim is misleading by suggesting wasteful expenditure where none occurred.

Full Text

A viral social media post alleges that former President John Dramani Mahama chartered a private jet costing £20,000 per hour for their recent official trip to Japan and Singapore. The post, which has been widely shared on Facebook, claims that the president opted for luxury air travel at the expense of Ghana’s struggling economy. 

In the comment section under the claim, readers range from outright disbelief, questioning the accuracy and demanding proof, to others who echo the claim emphatically, while some urge caution in accepting such claims at face value.

DUBAWA decided to investigate the claim due to the potential to mislead.

Verification

Multiple credible sources confirm that President John Dramani Mahama flew on commercial Emirates flights, not a private jet, for his official trip to Japan and Singapore starting on Sunday, 17 August 2025. Official communications explicitly state that Mahama “departed Accra on Sunday … aboard Emirates flight EK318, after … a thanksgiving service” and that he “transited through Dubai and arrived in Tokyo at 5:43 p.m. local time.” 

Likewise, a senior presidential aide publicly dismissed the private‑jet rumours as “propaganda,” noting “nobody has travelled via private jet to Japan or to Singapore.” The government’s press release similarly affirms the trip was an “official two-country visit to Japan and Singapore” aimed at strengthening bilateral ties. 

Flight Itinerary and Details

Accra to Dubai (EK 788): Emirates operates one daily ACC–DXB flight. On 17 Aug 2025, EK 788 departed Accra at 18:00 (local time, Kotoka Intl. Airport) on a Boeing 777. The scheduled flight time is 8 hours 15 minutes, arriving in Dubai around 06:15 (+1 day) local time. (Ghana and Dubai are 4 hours apart; 18:00 GH = 22:00 DXB on 17 Aug; arrival 06:15 DXB on 18 Aug = 02:15 GMT/UT).

Dubai to Tokyo (EK 318): After a layover in Dubai, President Mahama boarded Emirates EK 318 from DXB to Tokyo Narita. According to flight data, on Aug 19, 2025, EK 318 departed Dubai at 03:17 AM local time (one minute after its 02:40 scheduled time) and arrived at Narita at 5:34 PM Tokyo time. (Tokyo is GMT+9, so 5:34 PM JST is 8:34 AM GMT on 19 Aug – about 9 hours ahead of Ghana, matching the report). The aircraft was an Airbus A380-800. The President arrived in Tokyo at 5:43 PM local, which aligns with the flight schedule data.

Tokyo to Singapore: Public sources do not list the exact flight number from Japan to Singapore. However, official statements indicate that after the Tokyo conference, Mahama continued to Singapore for the next stage of his visit. It is plausible he again flew Emirates via Dubai (e.g. Tokyo→Dubai→Singapore), but the press did not publish specific flight numbers or times for the Tokyo–Singapore leg. (Emirates does operate DXB–SIN flights; a connecting itinerary via DXB would mirror the outbound pattern.)

Ticket Class and Seat Cost

Emirates’ ACC–DXB route offers Economy, Premium Economy, Business and First Class seats. For a head of state delegation, it is standard to book Business or First Class seats, though no report gives the exact class Mahama used. In any case, fares are publicly available: for example, travel sites show the cheapest one-way Emirates itinerary, Accra→Tokyo (via Dubai) in Economy is on the order of ~$800–$850. (Indeed, Trip.com lists “Cheapest one-way flight price $810” from Accra to Tokyo.) This reflects two legs; a single ACC–DXB leg (economy) often runs a few hundred dollars. By contrast, Business Class fares would be substantially higher (several times the economy rate), likely in the low thousands USD one-way. For reference, a round-trip ACC–DXB Business Class fare can easily exceed $4,000–$5,000, whereas an Economy fare is <$1,000. (Expedia notes ACC–DXB one-way flights start around $413 economy.)

Private Jet Charter Comparison

Chartering a private jet for Accra→Tokyo (and onward to Singapore) would be vastly more expensive. Reputable charter brokers estimate hourly rates as follows: small “super-mid” jets (e.g. Bombardier Challenger series) run about $5,000–$6,500 per flight-hour, while larger ultra-long-range jets cost $8,500–$12,000 per hour. Even using the lower range, an 8‑hour ACC→DXB flight plus ~10‑hour DXB→Tokyo flight (≈18 hr total) at ~$6,000/hr would be ~$108,000 in flight time alone. If Tokyo→Singapore (via Dubai) adds another ~8–10 hr, the total flying time might approach 25–28 hours, implying on the order of $150,000–$200,000 just for airtime. (These estimates exclude positioning flights, overnight crew costs, etc.) Thus, the opposition MPs’ claim of $690,000 is far above typical charter costs. As Mahama’s aide pointed out, chartering that Canadair Challenger (M-BAEP) should only cost mid-five figures per hour is far less than claimed.

Purpose of Trip and Funding

President Mahama’s trip was explicitly official and government-funded. The President’s Communications team and press releases emphasise it as “an official two-country visit” to deepen bilateral relations and promote trade/investment. Members of Parliament have raised questions (e.g. Assafuah on Citi News) about the costs to the taxpayer, including per-diem for the delegation. While no detailed expense breakdown has been published, officials have stated that tickets were procured through normal government channels. The Minister of State in charge of Communications flatly declared, “President Mahama has not travelled by private jet… he travelled to Japan via Emirates”. As is typical for state visits, the flights were paid for by Ghana’s government (i.e. public funds).

Conclusion

The viral claim that John Mahama and Okudzeto Ablakwa rented a private jet at £20,000 per hour for their official trip to Japan and Singapore is false. Verified flight records confirm that Mahama travelled on a regular Emirates commercial flight from Accra. This claim fits into a recurring pattern of misinformation linking Mahama to luxury jet travel.