Kashim Shettima“We know the consequences of unveiling a masquerade. We will get fierce opposition from those benefitting from the oil subsidy scam.”
Vice President Kashim Shettima made this statement today, May 30, when he officially assumed office at the Presidential villa, Abuja.
According to the Vice President, in 2022, Nigeria spent $10 billion subsidizing “the ostentatious lifestyle of the upper class of the society.”
He said that people in the upper class benefitted 90 percent from the oil subsidy, while poor 40 percent of Nigerians benefitted very little.
“The truth of the matter is that it is either we get rid of subsidy or the fuel subsidy gets rid of the Nigerian nation.”
He expressed confidence that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is prepared to face the challenges involved in the removal of the subsidy, saying: “where where there is a will, there is a way.
“Be rest assured that our president is a man of strong will and conviction. In the fullness of time, you will appreciate his noble intentions for the nation. “The issue of fuel subsidy will be frontally addressed. The earlier we do so, the better.”
Vice President Shettima said that the multiple exchange rates would be collapsed into one.
“So, these are two big elephants in the room and as the days go by, we will be unveiling our agenda. He is going to unveil his agenda because as I have always said, there can never be two captains in a ship. “He is the President and Commander-In-Chief of the armed forces.
“I am the vice president. Your relevance is directly proportional to the level of your loyalty to the president.
“This is a gentleman that I have known for well over a decade; that I have interacted closely with, be rest assured that we are going to work harmoniously as a team, as a family for the greater good of our nation.”
The Vice President paraphrased the late John F. Kennedy’s words: “to some generations much is given; to other generations much is expected, saying: “I believe this generation has a rendezvous with destiny and my principal, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is poised to redefine the meaning and concept of modern governance.
“I want to assure Nigerians that he is going to provide the lead. “He is going to provide the leadership and we will rally round him, give him our unequivocally support and loyalty to see to the realization of the Nigerian dream—a Nigeria where every black man in the world should be proud of.”
Shettima said that power is all about “how we can make life better for the common man. So, i want to assure our countrymen that President Bola Tinubu will, by the grace of God, catapult this nation to a higher pedestal.
“He is determined; he has the skills set; he has the temperament; the disposition and the purity of mind and commitment to give service to this nation.”
