Vice President Kashim Shettima has visited President Bola Tinubu in Lagos after representing the President at the 2026 United Nations General Assembly in New York.

The visit was disclosed by the Special Assistant to the President on Social Media, Dada Olusegun, in a post on Saturday.

Shettima, who spoke with journalists after the meeting in his Lagos residence , said he had remained in regular contact with Tinubu during the President’s stay abroad.

“Well, we are quite thrilled that he is back on the beat and we have been in regular contact throughout his sojourn abroad,” Shettima said.

He said advances in science and technology had made it possible for leaders to remain engaged in governance regardless of their location.

“So we have been in regular contact, we speak almost every other day and we are updating him on developments in the nation and we are happy he is back on the beat,” he said.

Shettima also defended some of the economic decisions taken by the Tinubu administration, including the removal of fuel subsidy and the unification of multiple exchange rates.

He urged Nigerians to be patient with the administration, saying the government was introducing measures to ease the economic hardship faced by citizens.

“When we assume the mantle of leadership, our foreign reserves was a staggeringly low $3.9bn that was not enough to import fuel for one month,” he said.

He said Tinubu “had the courage and the conviction to take far-reaching decisions,” including the withdrawal of the fuel subsidy and the realignment of multiple exchange rates.

“He saved the economy. I want Nigerians to understand this fundamental truism,” Shettima said.

The Vice President acknowledged the hardship being experienced by Nigerians but said the situation would not last indefinitely.

“We appreciate the pains Nigerians are going through, but tough times do not last forever, tough people do,” he said.

Shettima said the government would roll out programmes aimed at reducing the impact of the economic hardship, including the planned launch of e-logistics in the North-East.

He said the initiative would include 10,600 electric tricycles, 300 buses and e-taxis.

He added that the government was also working on programmes to support students and other vulnerable Nigerians.

“Be rest assured that we’ll come up with programmes and projects to ease the pains of the people,” he said.

Shettima also said the administration would combine governance with politics ahead of the 2027 general elections.

“Politics is in the air, but we’ll combine politics and governance,” he said.

PUNCH Online had reported that Tinubu arrived in Lagos after ending his working vacation in France.

The President arrived at the presidential wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, on Tuesday, where Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and other dignitaries received him.

Tinubu had departed Abuja on August 30 for the working vacation, spending one week in London before travelling to Paris.