President Bola Tinubu has disowned Vice-president Kashim Shettima concerning purported plan by their administration to establish a price control agency in order to arrest the rising cost of goods.
Shettima had on Tuesday at a two-day high-level strategic meeting on climate change, food systems, and resource mobilisation held at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja mentioned some raft of measures the government would put in place to check increasing cost of living, claiming a price control board is also on the way.
“The short-term strategy entails revitalising food supply through specific interventions like the distribution of fertilisers and grains to farmers and households to counteract the effects of subsidy removal; fostering collaboration between the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Water Resources for efficient farmland irrigation, ensuring year-round food production, and addressing price volatility by establishing a National Commodity Board,” the Vice president remarked.
This, the President contradicted at a meeting involving the Vice president, governors, the National Security Adviser, the Inspector-General of Police, the Director-General of the State Security Service (SSS) and ministers held on Thursday at the State House.
The contradiction was contained in a statement Presidential spokesman, Ajuri Ngelale, released, in which he narrated what Tinubu said at the meeting.
Quoting the President, Ngelale wrote, “What I will not do is to set a price control board. I will not also approve the importation of food.
“We should be able to get ourselves out of the situation we found ourselves in because importation will allow rent seekers to perpetrate fraud and mismanagement at our collective expense.
“We would rather support farmers with the schemes that will make them go to the farm and grow more food for everyone in the country.
“We must also look at the rapid but thoughtful implementation of our livestock development and management plans, including dairy farming and others.”
Credit: Orijorepreporter.com