Vice-President Kashim Shettima says President Bola Tinubu’s administration inherited a dire situation when it took over in 2023.
Shettima stated this on Thursday in Abuja when he hosted a delegation from the United Nations System in Nigeria on a courtesy visit.
According to him, fuel subsidy had been an albatross around the neck of successive governments in Nigeria.
“We had two options – either we get rid of subsidy or subsidy will get rid of the Nigerian nation.
“We have to be our brother’s keeper, but we were literally subsidising the fuel of the entire West African region,” he said.
He said that President Tinubu’s decision to abolish the subsidy and unify the exchange rates to allow the Naira to float freely “created a lot of challenges from the humanitarian end”.
Shettima added that removing fuel subsidy and unifying exchange rates were tough but necessary decisions to rescue Nigeria from economic disaster.
The Vice-President, however, assured all that Nigeria would work closely with the UN to address the country’s challenges.
He also promised the UN delegation that Nigeria would close ranks with the global body.
