The Vice President, Senator Kashim Shettima, has offered reasons by the administration of President Bola Tinubu will not blame the preceding one led by former President Muhammadu Buhari for any failure recorded.
Shettima stated this at the second Chronicle Roundtable organised by the 21st Century Chronicle in Abuja on Thursday.
The Vice President said this is the most difficult time to occupy political leadership in Nigeria due to the challenges facing the country, adding that President Tinubu was prepared to take the hard decision that will be irreversible even after his exit from office.
He said: “The President chose the option that will save the lives of the people instead of the ones that will lead to prolonged economic death.
Also Read:
- Alleged Nepotism: NHMST exposes source of report indicting NAHCON, threatens legal action
- Mining marshals at one: Alake vows fiercer battle against illegal mining
- Withdrawal of services by Osun LG workers uncalled for – APC chieftain
- Imagine Rivers State without a state of emergency, by Bayo Onanuga
- Food insecurity: Glo Foundation, Lagos Food Bank distribute food, other valuables
“We will not resort to putting the blame on the previous administration as leadership is about courage, continuity.
“Before we took charge, the biggest elephant in the room was about fuel subsidy removal.
“It was an albatross around the neck of the nation for the past 20 to 30 years.
“We understood why our predecessor decided to remove the subsidy because there was no sufficient budget for it in the fiscal year.
“A year before we took office, Nigeria’s debt service to revenue ratio had grown to 111.18 percent.
“It was an economic death sentence.
“To be plain to us, our debt service was that if you earn N100,000, you are forced to borrow an additional N11,800 to pay the debtor.
“How do we intend to survive this?
“It won’t be long before we become a pariah.”
On fuel subsidy, Shettima said: “We have to jettison the subsidy regime.
“It was a bitter pill to swallow, but we had to do it.
“A presidential candidate in the last election, eager to mock our economic trajectory, once pointed Argentina as a model to Nigeria and became an overnight market specialist.
“He was convinced that we had missed our way and should have adopted the ways of our friends in South America.
“Barely two weeks, we watched as Argentina’s inflation rate surged.
“We respect what the president is doing there but governance is not photocopying.”
On the intervention of the Central Bank and National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, in the currency manipulation regime, the Vice President said: “Today, I stand proud to say that our intervention has translated into desirable goals.
“Naira speculators were projecting that the Naira will go as far as N5,000 to the dollar.
“Some bought the dollar at the rate of N2,000 from banks.”
Follow The Eagle Online Channel on WhatsApp
