Emmanuella Amarachi Ozioko
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has reiterated that his government is taking steps to address the social and economic problems facing the country.
This came as Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the Director-General of the World Trade Organisation, WTO, has advocated a new social contract in Nigeria where certain rules in the economy and society are holy and must not be touched or changed when the government changes.
The President stated this on Sunday, in Lagos, at the beginning of the Nigerian Bar Association's (NBA) Annual General Conference.
Tinubu, who was represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima, emphasised some of the measures and policies being undertaken by his government to tackle the economic problems, saying that the crumble of the multiple exchange regimes has helped to check dishonesty.
Applauding Dr. Okonjo-Iweala’s address on the need for a new social contract between the government and the populace, he said: “Fellow Nigerians, it is appropriate to refer to the recent landmark position of the Supreme Court granting financial autonomy to the local government councils in the county.
“I applaud the upheaval for its consistent sustenance of the belief of democracy and good governance in the polity.
“As anticipated, this will motivate the much-desired developments at the local level, while I remain confident that more of such planned and reform-orientated legal interventions will be attained.”
Okonjo-Iweala supported a new social contract to address government plan inconsistencies.
Dr. Okonjo-Iweala, at a formal ceremony of the NBA Annual General Congress in Lagos State, complained that Nigeria was not presently where it is supposed to be as a nation, noting that part of the issues includes a lack of policy contradiction where every government leaves the policies of the previous administration.