Agitated by the persistent economic meltdown in the country, resulting in the unprecedented hardship on the citizenry, Senator Dino Melaye (APC, Kogi West), yesterday urged President Muhammadu Buhari to sack his economic team and reconstitute a new one.

Melaye, in a statement in Abuja, said the president must shake up his cabinet, even as he accused most members of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) of gross incompetence, inexcusable ineptitude and a distressing lack of capacity to deliver on the mandate of their ministries and agencies.

He said that those to face the immediate drastic action if the economy must be effectively rebooted to deliver on the change agenda of the present administration were the Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, Budget and National Planning Minister, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma and the Governor of the Central bank of Nigeria, CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele. Melaye said :”At the moment, it must be crystal clear to all discerning minds that the president’s widely-acclaimed magical body language has lost its presumed aura and efficacy. “His no-nonsense demeanor is equally neither instilling fear nor commanding respect and loyalty from amongst his cabinet members.”

It is therefore obvious that the time for barking is over; now is the time to bite and boot out all those who have demonstrated, in the past several months, a crass lack of capacity to effectively carry out the functions of their office.

“The Finance Minister has not only displayed gross incompetence on the job, she also lacks the basic and rudimentary grasp of economic fundamentals necessary to run a critical sector of the Nigerian economy like the Finance Ministry.

“It is time for her to go now and pave way for a qualified and experienced person to steer the Nigerian economy away from the dark woods it has sunk presently under her stewardship”. On Udoma Udo Udoma, he stated : “to be sure, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma is a very charismatic man, an accomplished lawyer, and a quintessential gentleman with a fairly untainted reputation.