The vice president, Mr Kashim Shettima yesterday confirmed that the Nigerian economy is in dire straits and requires a robust roadmap that to fix it.
The vice president stated this when he received in audience members of the members of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy Tax Reforms led by its chairman, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
He said “we are in a big mess” and charged the committee to come up with workable solutions that would bring the economy out of the doldrums.
“The task before you is enormous; I believe you have the best brains to come up with a robust roadmap that will reposition our economy, addressing some of the fundamental issues underlying our fiscal and tax policies. Fiscal and tax policies are key to the realisation of any nation’s economic development.
“I believe you will come up with a roadmap to salvage our nation, we are in a big mess, but I have confidence in your team. This is a great nation chained by poor governance, chained by many challenges and my principal is a man of courage and conviction, he is a progressive man in the Nigerian political space,” he said.
The vice president noted that fiscal policy and tax reforms are potent tools for resource mobilisation and charged the committee to make recommendations that would be quick deliverables in view of the current economic realities.
Shettima assured the tea of the cooperation of the National Economic Council.
“Our focus should largely dwell on domestic resource mobilisation, especially with trends in the world today; even the biggest economies in the world are faced with this reality.”
On the composition of the committee, the vice president said: “I think the composition of this committee bears testimony to the seriousness that the president attaches to your mandate. Honestly, I am proud of you. I am personally conversant with some of the members of this committee who are men and women of impeccable character, high integrity, committed and patriotic.”
In his remarks, the special adviser to the president on revenue, Mr Zaccheus Adedeji, stated that the committee would be interested to work with the NEC to ensure effective collaboration with the sub-national governments who are critical stakeholder group in the task before the committee.
Earlier, Oyedele had expressed the committee’s readiness “to help our country to redefine, redesign a new fiscal policy framework that is fit for our nation to thrive and deliver the Nigeria we want for our people to flourish in their endeavours.”
“We are laser-focused on our mandate as directed by Mr. President, which covers fiscal governance, revenue transformation and, fiscal competitiveness and economic growth facilitation.”
He assured that the committee would engage with Nigerians both at home and abroad as well as with all segments of the society.
Also, he expressed the readiness of the committee to engage with sub-national governments through NEC in achieving the mandate of the committee.
