Thirteen days after assuming office, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is scheduled to move into the Presidential Villa in Abuja as his official residence next week.
The President hasn’t moved into the Aso Rock official residence due to ongoing maintenance nearly two weeks after taking the oath of office.
Recall that around three weeks prior to the inauguration of his successor on May 29, the immediate past president, Muhammadu Buhari, moved from the main residence to the Glass House.
The official residence was being cleaned and some of its areas were being fumigated while white paint was being applied.
However, the renovation, which largely entailed finishing, fittings, and the change of some security apparatuses, did not include the provision of new sets of furniture.
Although, President Tinubu has been coming to work from his Asokoro private residence and has been busy meeting guests at his official office, the Council Chamber, and the State House Banquet Hall.
Since his inauguration, President Tinubu has been using the quarter guard gate when resuming and leaving office instead of coming to work from the main residence.
Likewise, it was learned that Shettima had been coming to the office from his personal house and not his official residence, the Aguda House.
In a chat with The Punch, sources in the Presidential Villa said the timeframe left by President Buhari to move out of the official residence was too short and therefore delayed maintenance works on the 32-year-old Aso Rock Villa.
A security source said, “He (Tinubu) has not moved in because maintenance is still on. And that is because maintenance started late because of the time Baba Buhari left the residence and moved into the Glass House.
“Even though he vacated the main residence a few weeks before handing over, the time was short. If you compare it to Goodluck Jonathan, Jonathan left about a month before Buhari’s swearing-in. And so there was enough time for maintenance. That is why Baba Buhari did not waste time entering the house because it was ready.”
However, another Presidency source told our correspondent on Friday that the President was expected to move in “this weekend or early next week.”
“I can confirm that he (Tinubu) has not moved into his residence. But I also know that he may do it this weekend or early next week,” the source said.
Another senior source, who confirmed the planned relocation, said Tinubu was quite comfortable in his Asokoro residence and did not see the need to stay in the Defence House before his swearing-in.
The source stated, “He is quite comfortable where he is. Even when he was President-elect, he only visited the Defence House to hold a few meetings and leave. He didn’t really stay there.
“But he will move into the Villa soon because he is the President. He has to operate from here.”
Ada Peter
