SGF Seeks Support of Nigerians on Economic Recovery

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), George Akume, has solicited the support and understanding of all and sundry to get the nation’s economy out of the doldrums.

Akume, represented by Dr Dapo Oyedemi, the Senior Special Adviser to the SGF, made the call at the Nigerian Institute of Management Chartered (NIM) 2023 Annual National Management Conference in Lagos Monday.

The event had as its theme: ‘Managing Nigeria’s Path to Sustainable Economic Growth and Prosperity: The Challenges before the New National Leadership’.

The SGF noted that the theme was apt and relevant towards charting a new course and national rebirth for the country in line with the eight-point agenda of the Federal Government.

He recalled that President Bola Tinubu unveiled an eight-point agenda to turn around the economy and make life comfortable for all Nigerians.

These include: food security; ending poverty; economic growth and job creation; access to capital; improving security; improving the playing field on which people and particularly companies operate; rule of law; and fighting corruption.

Akume said concerted efforts were being made by the Federal Government in all critical sectors to get the economy up and running and deliver the dividends of democracy.

“By the theme of this year’s conference, the Institute has further demonstrated that it is committed to supporting the Federal Government in achieving its drive to reposition and turn around the nation’s economy.

“I can boldly tell this gathering of professional managers that the Bola Tinubu-led administration is in a haste to make a mark and will not disappoint in this daunting, but surmountable task.

“While we plead for more time to implement our eight-point agenda, we equally solicit the support and understanding of all and sundry to get the economy out of the doldrums,” he said.

Akume urged NIM to improve its visibility at public sessions of the National Assembly to make more robust professional management input that would be most relevant in the public domain.

“To truly set Nigeria on the path of greatness and prosperity, good leadership built on enduring democratic principles must be on the front burner and our collective consciousness always.

“I, therefore, call on the Institute to ensure that the code of conduct becomes a culture for all Nigerians through their interaction and collaboration with the National Orientation Agency (NOA) and other relevant agencies that will support this cause.

“If all Nigerians align themselves with the Institute’s code of conduct, Nigeria shall become an enviable nation,” he said.

In her remarks, the NIM President, Dr. Christiana Atako, noted that President Tinubu inherited a fractured and weak economy when it took over the reins of leadership in May this year.

Atako commended the present administration’s efforts in taking on the numerous problems head on and finding lasting solutions to revive and revamp the nation’s economy.

She noted that the unveiling of the present administration’s eight-point agenda showed that the administration has commenced work.

Atako, however, noted that government’s decisions on fuel subsidy and floating of the naira, which came with some pains, required measures to mitigate the effects of the decision on the most vulnerable members of society.

“The Institute admonishes the Federal Government to continue working closely with labour and civil society organisations, community leaders and other stakeholders.

“This is to ensure that meaningful remedial programmes are put in place to help the citizenry to cope with the new economic realities.

“In all, the administration should focus on implementing policies that will promote economic growth, job creation, and poverty reduction.

“This could include diversification of the economy, getting the nation’s refineries up and running again, investments in infrastructure, education and healthcare, as well as measures to attract foreign investment and promote entrepreneurship.

“The Institute enjoins Nigerians to join hands with the Federal Government by supporting its good economic policies.

“Nigerians can overcome the effects of subsidy removal on their daily life through budgeting, increasing productivity, reducing consumption, embracing local goods, and seeking alternative transportation,” she said.

Atako said that while the masses were tightening their belt as a result of ongoing economic policies, it was only moral and rational that those in government make conscious effort to reduce the cost of governance.

She said frivolous and avoidable expenses must be shunned at all cost to show equal sacrifice and commitment to resuscitate the economy on both sides to promote unity of purpose between the governors and the governed.

“We need to review and reinvent our version of democracy, find ways of adjusting it and ensure a system and a structure that guarantee that the citizens, rather than their representatives, are the primary focus and beneficiaries of the dividends of our democratic system,” she said.

NIM also unveiled the Journal of Management Professionals (research journal on management practice in Nigeria). (NAN)