Nigerian Vice President Addresses Issues of Growing Inflation and Governance Standards

Vice-President Kashim Shettima has stated that the impoverished in the nation is enraged with government officials and other members of the elite, who make up the minority, as many Nigerians moan in poverty as a result of the growing cost of living brought on by unparalleled inflation.

At the Executive Intelligence Management Course 16 graduation ceremony on Saturday in Abuja, attended by participants from various security agencies and state government candidates, the vice president made this statement. The National Institute for Security Studies was responsible for organising the event.

For the first time since President Bola Tinubu assumed office on May 29, 2023, a high-ranking government official has acknowledged the severe suffering that the nation faces.

The President said during his inaugural address that the fuel subsidy was permanent. A few hours later, the petrol price at the pump increased from N238 to N263 a litre to at least N500. At the moment, it retails for N580 to N615.

The Federal Government of Nigeria announced that the naira’s exchange rate to major international currencies would be allowed to float and be determined by supply and demand while the country’s citizens adjusted to the new reality and the ensuing rise in the prices of goods and services, including transport fares.

Shortly before Tinubu took office, the local currency saw a sharp decline due to that move, peaking at N465.07 against the US dollar. The naira surged to over 1,000 versus the US dollar due to the scarcity of dollars and other major international currencies.

On Friday, the official Investor and Exporter forex market saw the naira drop to an all-time low of N1,099.05/$, capping a volatile couple of months for the national currency.
The local currency rapidly declined due to the move, peaking at N465.07 versus the US dollar only a few weeks before Tinubu took office. The naira rose to more than 1,000 against the US dollar due to the scarcity of dollars and other major foreign currencies.

The naira ended a difficult couple of months for the national currency on Friday when it dropped to an all-time low of N1,099.05/$ at the official Investor and Exporter forex market.

On Saturday, Shettima asserted, “We are all from a tiny part of Nigerian society.” Furthermore, people with low incomes are angry with us; you don’t need a soothsayer to tell you that. Go hang out with the impoverished in the slums. Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State, is where I was raised. There once was a pilgrimage to the house of a wealthy man who brought a brand-new automobile to live in.

“People used to go see instead of being angry, but rather with admiration.” But now, when we drive around in our armoured vehicles, the impoverished will look at us with disdain. We must raise the standard of governance. And our time frame is really narrow—no more than ten to twenty years. Let’s raise the bar of government.”

He added that uplifting the people and generating jobs would help reduce insecurity in the nation. “Let’s create jobs; let’s give the populace hope,” the vice president continued. And all this crazy uncertainty will vanish when we start creating jobs. If this is done, there won’t be banditry or Boko Haram, especially for those in the north. Although we might place the responsibility on the bandits, it is our duty as leaders to handle this for future generations.

The most disregarded group in our culture is the impoverished. It isn’t easy to distinguish between them and their creatures. They even rear animals that people in the city own. Therefore, every problem must have both kinetic and non-kinetic solutions, whether it’s Boko Haram or rural banditry in the North-East, North-West, and North-Central regions; whether it’s the agitation of IPOB in the South-East or the difficulties in the South-South.

But he asked the populace to support the President’s attempts to realign the nation and to exercise patience with him. Please grant the President the benefit of the doubt, I beg you. Allow us to assist you. Let’s unite and take comfort in the knowledge that he is committed to redefining the nature and scope of contemporary leadership and is always prepared to realign the Nigerian people. But he can’t accomplish anything without your and my assistance, the vice president stated.

He chastised individuals who want to leave the nation, saying they “hardly think beyond their noses.”