Yuletide: Skip vacation this season, let’s ease burden of Nigerians, Shettima tells NEC

Vice President Kashim Shettima has charged members of the National Economic Council (NEC) to shelve the idea of vacation this yuletide and carry on with issues of governance to ease the burden of Nigerians hanging on their shoulders.

He gave the charge Thursday while speaking during the 138th meeting of the NEC, which was held virtually.

He also charged the council members to be alive to the demands of Nigerians, noting that, “as the year draws to a close, none of us in this chamber should anticipate a vacation. I tend to think so because upon our shoulders rests the weight of responsibilities from which we cannot escape. We are returning to be judged by the promises we made to be here.”

The vice president said his principal, President Bola Tinubu, has shown that the challenges inherited by his administration are surmountable, and has offered visionary leadership and presented a coherent development plan to assist in the country’s pursuit of order, abundance and stability.

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According to a statement issued by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, Shettima explained that government, at all levels, cannot afford to relax at the current stage of things because constituents are waiting to see the manifestation of all campaign promises.

The VP stressed the need for the citizens to feel the positive impact of fuel subsidy removal and forex unification, noting that high inflation and cost of living are global challenges that have affected the economies of all countries.

Shettima said these should be considered as enough “inspiration for us to come together and tackle ours through realistic interventions.”

Meanwhile, following deliberations on critical matters and assessments of potential short-term, medium and long-term strategies for addressing pressing economic issues, NEC set up committees on Economic Affairs, as well as that on Crude Oil Theft And Management.

The committees are to be headed by Kwara State Governor, Alh AbdulRahman AbdulRazak, and his Imo State counterpart, Senator Hope Uzodimma, respectively.

The Council also received an update on account balances as of 31st October 2023. The Excess Crude Account as of 31st October 2023 stood at $473,754.57, while the Stabilization Account was N32,063,186,474.96 during the same period. Development Of Natural Resources Account as of 31st October 2023 stood at N156,770,745,529.74.