Vice President Kashim Shettima has appealed to Nigerians, friends and associates to shun gifts and elaborate celebrations as he marks his 60th birthday, urging them instead to channel any money earmarked for him to charitable causes or people in need.
Shettima made the appeal in a statement ahead of his birthday, saying he was “even more resolute” about his longstanding request that friends, supporters, well-wishers and admirers should not spend money on gifts or material gestures in his honour.
The Vice President said attaining the age of 60 had reinforced his conviction that the occasion should be marked with reflection, gratitude and service to humanity rather than material accumulation.
“Sixty is an age at which our people expect a man to have exchanged impulse for reflection, vanity for gratitude, and the desire to accumulate for the wisdom to give,” he said.
According to him, the milestone should prompt deeper questions about an individual’s contribution to society rather than what he has accumulated over the years.
He therefore urged anyone wishing to celebrate him to donate to a charity, support a worthy cause or assist a needy person anywhere in Nigeria.
“A nation is ennobled by the care it extends to those who need the strength of others,” Shettima said, adding that generosity should not be measured solely by the size of the donation.
He described acts of kindness as “among the most eloquent prayers” anyone could offer on his behalf, noting that many people attain significant milestones in life through the support and goodwill of others.
The Vice President said Nigerians should repay the kindness they had received from family, friends, teachers, colleagues, supporters and even strangers by extending similar assistance to people who might never be able to repay them.
“Every hand that lifts another somewhere in Nigeria tomorrow will be a candle lit for me,” he said.
Rather than birthday gifts, advertisements and celebrations, Shettima asked Nigerians to pray for him and for Nigeria.
He specifically called for prayers for peace in communities, prosperity for Nigerians, wisdom for the nation’s leaders and the realisation of Nigeria’s potential.
Shettima also expressed optimism about the country, highlighting the industriousness, entrepreneurial spirit, generosity and youthful population of Nigerians as major national assets.
“Our diversity is a vast inheritance, our cultures are reservoirs of strength, and our capacity to find fellowship across difference is one of the enduring beauties of the Nigerian spirit,” he said.
The Vice President thanked Nigerians for their loyalty, affection, friendship and prayers over the years, and wished them long life, good health and fulfilment.
He also prayed for them to experience “the quiet joy of being useful to someone who may never be able to repay you.”
— Senator Kashim Shettima, GCON
Vice President, Federal Republic of Nigeria
