Vice President Kashim Shettima has criticised opposition figures Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi at a presidential campaign event in Ikwerre, Rivers State, arguing that calls to reinstate Nigeria’s fuel subsidy reflect poor economic advice and defending President Bola Tinubu’s record in office.
Key takeaways
- Shettima said Atiku Abubakar had been wrongly advised to support the return of fuel subsidies.
- He described Peter Obi, identified as the Nigeria Democratic Congress presidential candidate, as politically irrelevant.
- The vice president accused opposition politicians of attempting to portray Tinubu negatively rather than recognising his achievements.
- Shettima said Tinubu inherited an economy close to collapse and took difficult decisions rather than postponing reforms.
Criticism of opposition candidates
Speaking on Saturday during Tinubu’s presidential campaign in the Ikwerre area of Rivers State, Shettima said the African Democratic Congress, ADC, presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar was relying on the counsel of what he called “voodoo economists” in proposing a restoration of the fuel subsidy.
He also said Peter Obi, whom he referred to as the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, presidential candidate, had lost political relevance.
Shettima further alleged that opposition figures were seeking to discredit the president. Invoking former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, he said Churchill had observed that truth was so valuable that it needed “a bodyguard of lies” around it. Shettima said it was painful that political figures on the opposing side were trying to demonise Tinubu instead of celebrating him.
He said Abubakar, who he said held a hygiene certificate from a school in Kano, was “intellectually malnourished” and had been misled into advocating the return of the subsidy. He repeated his assertion that Obi had become politically irrelevant.
Defence of Tinubu’s economic decisions
The vice president characterised Tinubu as a decent leader and said the country’s economic conditions had improved markedly since he took office.
“I dare say without any fear that Tinubu is a decent man,” Shettima said. He argued that, when Tinubu assumed leadership around three and a half years ago, Nigeria’s economy was close to collapse and the country was heading “to Kinshasa.”
Rather than delaying decisions or blaming his predecessor, Tinubu showed the courage and conviction to confront the situation directly, Shettima said.
