Former Minister of Education, Oby Ezekwesili, on Tuesday tackled the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, for claiming to be the head of the Economic Management Team while he was vice president.
Atiku had on Monday in a tweet claimed to have acted as the head of the economic management team while he was the vice-president from 1999 to 2007.
According to him,during the period he was instrumental in designing a private sector revival strategy which recorded tremendous progress.
“As head of the economic management team while I was Vice President, I was instrumental in designing a private sector revival strategy and advocated for the opening of the economy for private sector investments in several sectors. And we made tremendous progress,”Atiku had tweeted
Responding to the tweet, Ezekwesili said the former vice president was never the Head of the Economic Management Team.
She accused Atiku of telling an “absurd lie” which can not help him in anyway.
She tweeted, “Dear former Vice President Atiku, please ask the handlers of your Twitter account to stop misleading the public. You were never the Head of the Economic Management Team.
“This absurd lie does you no good at all. Please ask your team to stop it. Happy New Year. I wish you well.”
Giving further explanation in twitter thread, she further explained how the group worked at that time, stating that she was also a member of the team then.
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Ezekwesili said, “There is a difference between the Economic Management Team set up for the first time ever in 2003 by President Obasanjo and the National Economic Council established by the 1999 Constitution as amended; Section 153(1) and Paragraphs 18 & 19 of Part I of the Third Schedule.
“The Presidential Economic Management Team (we called it “The Economic Team” for brevity) was a Technical Team of 12 persons from a range of expertise whom President Obasanjo constituted to drive Nigeria’s Economic Reform Agenda during his 2nd Term in office 2003-2007.
“In constituting the Economic Team, we designed it @ two levels of Leadership:
1. Political Leadership: The President Olusegun Obasanjo
2. Technical Leadership: The Minister of Finance, Dr Okonjo-Iweala.
“At the Political Leadership level of the Economic Team, the then President, Olusegun Obasanjo instituted a Weekly Meeting before the Federal Executive Council where he would meet with us his Economic Team to discuss the Economic Reform Agenda. The President was Chair.
“As Chair of the Political Leadership Level of the Economic Team, the then President decided (usually with the counsel of his Economic Team) which sectoral Ministers, or Heads of Agencies, Parastatals and Departments joined this Weekly Wednesday meeting held before FEC meeting.
“As Chair of the Technical Level Leadership, the then Minister of Finance was the Head of our Technocratic Team of 12 persons which met in her office at the Ministry statutorily weekly and as often as necessary daily as we designed and began implementing the Economic Reforms.
“There is no sincere basis for confusing the work of the Presidential Economic Management Team that I described in the previous tweets with the National Economic Council, provided for in the Constitution and chaired by a Vice President. The functions are not the same at all. None.”
But reacting,Paul Ibe, Media Adviser to Atiku Abubakar insisted that his principal was Chairperson of the National Economic Council and Head of the Economic Management Team.
“Dear Oby Ezekwesili, I know it’s political season and people resort to all sorts of antics in support of their preferred candidates. But some things should be considered too low,”he wrote.
“It is established history that Atiku Abubakar as Chairman, National Economic Council, headed the Nation’s Economic Management Team between 1999-2007, during which Nigeria had some of her best economic growth.
“In trying – and failing – to weaken his standing in public, let us not resort to this sort of jaded ‘aproko’ pettiness. If Atiku wasn’t head of the Economic Management Team as VP, so who was? You?
“This matter is a constitutional provision and you will do well either to bury your ignorance or advertise your apparent mischief. Enjoy the rest of your day but not in a bliss of ignorance, madam.”