Wunmi Semudara
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Chief Wale Edun, has vowed that Nigeria would no longer borrow from any local or foreign organisation with the removal of subsidy on petrol and exchange rate harmonisation.
The Minister gave this assurance at the end of the inaugural Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting yesterday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
According to him, the benefit of the subsidy removal would be ploughed back into various sectors aimed at boosting government revenue and improving the business environment for local and foreign investment.
Wale said that with the increased revenue from subsidy removal, various palliatives have been made available to cushion its effect on a short, medium and long-term basis.
He reiterated the President Bola Tinubu-led administration’s desire to bring back the economy from the wood it has found itself over time.
Also, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Doris Uzoka-Anite, said investment offers were already coming up in different sectors of the economy, including oil and gas, health, solid minerals and agriculture.
She said that her ministry would collaborate with relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government to achieve the president’s commitment to the creation of jobs for the teeming youthful population of Nigeria.
This was even as the Minister of Health, Dr. Ali Pate said that critical sections of the health value chain would be exploited to improve the economy and create jobs for Nigerians.
He said that the president had advised them to be courageous and innovative in making decisions that would benefit the country, adding that the president has already taken such moves.
Dr Pate said that the president was responsive to the need to set the economy on the path of progress with his move to remove subsidy on petrol from the first day of his inauguration.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Malagi, said that the president charged the cabinet members to be transparent in their dealings, especially in disseminating necessary information.
He asked the media to avail themselves of this opportunity through verification and fact-checking on their stories, adding that this will reduce the incidence of informing Nigerians out of ignorance.
