Vice President Kashim Shettima has urged state governors to ensure that the gains of President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms translate into jobs, affordable transportation, improved healthcare and greater financial security for Nigerians. Shettima gave the charge on Thursday while addressing members of the National Economic Council (NEC) at its 161st…...
Vice President Kashim Shettima has urged state governors to ensure that the gains of President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms translate into jobs, affordable transportation, improved healthcare and greater financial security for Nigerians.
Shettima gave the charge on Thursday while addressing members of the National Economic Council (NEC) at its 161st meeting, held virtually.
According to a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Communications, Stanley Nkwocha, the vice president said the success of economic policies should be measured by their impact on the daily lives of citizens.
He maintained that although the president’s economic reform programme was designed to achieve broader national prosperity, governments at all levels must ensure that the benefits reach ordinary Nigerians.
“The first dividend of prosperity should be the confidence to plan a life. Our task is to make such confidence less dependent on fortune,” Shettima said.
He noted that the council’s discussions on transportation, healthcare, police reform and livestock development were directly connected to the quality of life Nigerians should expect from economic progress.
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“Our separate jurisdictions must serve a common public interest,” he said, urging federal and state governments to strengthen cooperation in delivering essential services.
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Shettima also called on governors to bring their knowledge of local conditions into national policy decisions, saying effective implementation required clearly defined responsibilities and practical agreements among the different levels of government.
“Our separate mandates must not become competing excuses. Each Governor carries knowledge that no federal document can supply,” he said.
The vice president added that President Tinubu had made economic reform a means of achieving wider national prosperity, but said the contribution of state governments must strengthen its social and productive impact.
“His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, has made economic reform the instrument of a larger national ambition. Our contribution must give that ambition social depth and productive strength,” he stated.
He urged members of the council to assess policy proposals based on their ability to reduce uncertainty, create opportunities and strengthen public confidence in government.
“Nigerians deserve institutions on which they can organise their lives. Providing that assurance is among the most consequential uses of public authority. That is the assurance we owe them,” Shettima said.