By Laraba MUREY
As encomiums continue to pour in on President Bola Tinubu’s 73rd birthday Vice President Kashim Shettima has lauded the president for his courage and sacrifices, stating that history will remember him as the leader who took on the nation’s most complex challenges.
It will be recalled that President Tinubu removed fuel subsidy at his inauguration in 2023, an action that has had far-reaching economic implications for majority of Nigerians.
Shettima speaking at a special Iftar held to mark the president’s birthday at the presidential villa in Abuja on Saturday night, said Tinubu is taking “bullets” that many leaders before him “simply lacked the courage to face.”
He said: “Thanks to his boldness, future presidents of Nigeria will not have to wrestle with the same ghosts that haunted past administrations, including fraud-ridden fuel subsidies, an unstable forex market, and the suppression of local government autonomy.
“These were the thorny issues that many before him sidestepped. But Asiwaju did not sidestep history; he came to rewrite it.
“And in rewriting it, Asiwaju has taken the bullets that many before him simply lacked the courage to face. But that is the thing about true leadership: it is not for those who seek comfort. It is for those who understand that the path to national greatness is lined with difficult choices.”
On his part, Senate President Godswill Akpabio praised the President’s ability to forgive and his relentless passion for national development.
Akpabio described the president as a leader who thinks outside the box and as the ‘most audacious president’ in the country’s history.
He said under Tinubu’s watch, governors are getting more allocation.
“If I were a governor under your administration, I would have been a ‘supernatural governor’ and not an uncommon governor,” he said.
Deputy President of the Senate, Jibrin Barau, stressed that the president has demonstrated a life of dedicated service as one of the foremost advocates in the struggle for achieving democracy in the beloved country.
“Under his leadership over the past 22 months, Nigeria is being repositioned for the benefit of both present and future generations.
“His initiatives are already bearing fruit, as evidenced by the continuous decrease in food prices, exchange rate stabilisation and improved security.
“I urge all to continue to pray for our country and to offer their full support to Mr President as he works tirelessly to ensure a better life for all citizens. We at the National Assembly stand with him firmly on this journey to address our nation’s challenges.”
