Minister denies dismissing economic recession as a “word”

The Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, on Thursday denied ownership of a social media account that posted controversial updates about Nigeria’s economic recession on Wednesday.

The account, @Mrskemiadeosun on micro-blogging platform, Twitter, played down the significance of a recession after the National Bureau of Statistics announced that Nigeria’s economy contracted by 2.06% in the second quarter, bringing the country into a long predicted recession.

“The strongest of all warriors are these two, time and patience. I know people are concerned about the recession. Recession is a word,” the handle tweeted.

The tweet was later deleted.

Festus Akanbi, spokesman for Mr. Adeosun, told PREMIUM TIMES the account was fake and the statements did not reflect the position of his principal.

“The Twitter handle, @Mrskemiadeosun, does not belong to the Honourable Minister of Finance. At no point did she make that kind of statement in her interaction with the media after the Federal Executive Council meeting on Wednesday. The fake handle does not belong to her,” Mr. Akanbi said.

“There are several other handles circulating on social media including Facebook.”

Mr. Akanbi also said Mrs. Adeosun has no presence on Twitter.

“I can tell you categorically that she doesn’t have a Twitter account,” Mr. Akanbi said.

The comments came after the Peoples Democratic Party condemned the statements and demanded Mrs. Adeosun’s apology.

“Mrs. Kemi Adeosun’s statement yesterday was an out of line & insensitive attempt at signalling. Contrary to her belief, “recession” is not just a word. It’s a horrible reality for millions of Nigerians who face increasing difficulty in putting food on the table & meeting basic everyday financial obligations,” the party had said in a statement.

“Her comments fly against the reality of rising food costs, parents withdrawing children from schools due to fee increments, rising transportation costs, rents & other such everyday expenditure.

“Her comments are an insult to suffering Nigerians & make mockery of the pain we bear as a result of the sheer incompetence & lack of ability of the Muhammadu Buhari administration of which she is an integral part.”

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