Presidency has accused unscrupulous Nigerians of working to undermine President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration to revamp the Nigerian economy.

It declared that smugglers and politicians were the brains behind the attempt to pull the nation backward.

The presidency condemned the decades of mismanagement and underutilisation of the country’s assets within and outside the borders, leading to revenue losses that have hindered economic growth.

Vice President Kashim Shettima made the assertions yesterday at the Public Wealth Management Conference in Abuja.

Shettima said 45 trucks loaded with maize were intercepted while making their way to neighbouring countries at midnight on Sunday.

He said, “Just three nights ago, 45 trucks of maize were caught being transported to neighbouring countries. Just in that Ilela axis, there are 32 illegal smuggling routes. And the moment those foodstuffs were intercepted, the price of maize came down by N10,000. It came down from N60,000 to N50,000.

“So, there are forces that are hell-bent on undermining our nation, but this is the time for us to coalesce into a singular entity. We have to make this country work. We have to move beyond politics. We are now in the face of governance.

“Sadly, some of our countrymen are still in the political mode. They are the practitioners of violence, advocating that Nigeria should go the Lebanon way. But Nigeria is greater than any of us here. Nigeria will weather the storm.”

According to Shettima, instead of waiting till 2027, desperate politicians who could not get to power through the ballot box were hell-bent on plunging this country into a state of anarchy.

The vice president admitted that Nigerians were passing through challenges and appealed for patience, as he expressed confidence that things would soon change for the better.

Shettima, who represented Tinubu at the event, hinted at plans by the present administration to create millions of jobs by unlocking the value of Nigeria’s vast public assets to optimize and double the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

He said that with economic revitalisation as its top priority, the federal government has a target of raising at least $10 billion to increase foreign exchange liquidity that will, in turn, stabilise the Naira.

The finance minister assured that while 42,000 metric tons of assorted grains are being released with 60,000 metric tonnes to follow shortly, as part of measures to arrest food inflation, food prices would drop in the coming months as a result of government actions and policies.

The conference was organised to draw up strategies for effectively managing the nation’s assets and resources to enhance the welfare of its citizens.

Chairman of the MOFI Board, Dr Shamsudeen Usman, assured that MOFI will, going forward, play a more active role in the management of assets under its purview, even as he urged operators of the assets to see MOFI as partners rather than competitors or regulators.

Also, the chief executive officer of MOFI, Dr Armstrong Takang, gave an overview of the MOFI renewed mandate, particularly highlighting expectations from the public and the private sector. He also announced the launch of a N100 billion Project Preparation Fund by MOFI as part of its renewed mandate of ensuring professionalism in the management of public assets.

He said the overall objective is to deliver commercial value for the common good of the people, assuring that the company will transform the fortunes of public assets under its purview and restore investor confidence in both the operations and management of the assets.

END.