Vice-President Kashim Shettima has cautioned opposition politicians against advocating the adoption of foreign economic policies in Nigeria without considering the country’s peculiar circumstances, including its population, economic structure and institutional realities.
Shettima spoke on Wednesday at the inauguration of the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council (APCPCC) at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, where he defended President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms and urged Nigerians to give the administration more time to consolidate its policies.
He argued that economic prescriptions that worked in other countries could not be applied directly to Nigeria without adapting them to local realities.
Taking a swipe at the Nigeria Democratic Congress and its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, over his comparisons between Nigeria and other countries, the Vice-President said a country’s economic policies must reflect its unique circumstances.
“A country of over 250 million people cannot be governed through borrowed statistics and economic prescriptions detached from its peculiarities,” he said.
Shettima cited Bangladesh as an example, arguing that policies that worked there could not automatically produce similar results in Nigeria because of differences in population, economic structures, institutions and national circumstances.
“I respect Peter Obi. But he has gone beyond his mastery of philosophy to make an august claim about winning the 2023 presidential election without adducing a shred of evidence to buttress his assertion,” he said.
He described Obi as “the master of bogus statistics and incoherent economic prescriptions”, insisting that the country’s economic challenges required policies tailored to its realities.
The Vice-President also responded to former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, saying political ambition must be accompanied by character, discipline and an understanding of the responsibilities of public office.
Despite his criticism of the opposition, Shettima urged APC campaigners to maintain civility and treat political opponents with respect.
“For the rest of the duration of this campaign, we’ll discuss ideas, we’ll discuss policies, but we’ll treat all our opponents with respect and dignity. They are not our enemies. They are our brothers. They are our countrymen. They are our leaders,” he said.
He warned party supporters against engaging in exchanges of insults, urging them instead to counter criticism with facts, statistics and reasoned arguments.
“We have the capacity to respond to all sorts of innuendos and outright lies that our political opponents are taking on, but we won’t fall into their traps. We’ll give them facts. We’ll give them statistics. We argue with reason, not with sentiments, not with exaggerated truth or fabricated lies,” he said.
Defending the Tinubu administration’s economic programme, Shettima said the government inherited an economy facing significant fiscal pressures and had taken difficult decisions, including the removal of the petrol subsidy and efforts to address distortions in the foreign exchange market.
He maintained that the reforms were necessary to tackle longstanding economic challenges but acknowledged that their benefits must translate into improved living conditions for Nigerians.
“The next obligation is to turn these gains into jobs, meaningful earnings and meaningful planning,” he said.
Shettima cited economic growth of 4.2 per cent in the first half of 2026 as evidence of progress under the administration, while stressing that improved economic indicators must result in tangible benefits for households and businesses.
He said the government’s priority should be to sustain the reforms, strengthen their implementation and ensure that public resources deliver measurable results.
The Vice-President also argued that Tinubu deserved a second term, maintaining that the administration’s reform programme had gained momentum and that the country should not abandon it before its expected benefits were fully realised.
