Vice President Kashim Shettima has appealed to Nigerians, friends, supporters and associates not to spend money on gifts or celebrations to mark his 60th birthday.
Shettima, who turns 60 on Wednesday, made the appeal in a statement shared on his X account on Tuesday night, urging those who wish to celebrate him to channel such resources to charities, causes or individuals in need across the country.
The Vice President said he had consistently made the same request over the years but had become “even more resolute” about it as he reached the milestone age.
“Over the years, I have been deeply humbled by the affection, prayers and goodwill that have accompanied my birthdays,” he said, adding that such occasions reminded him of the friendships and relationships he had built over the years.
Shettima urged his well-wishers not to purchase gifts or undertake expensive projects in his honour.
“Please do not spend a kobo on a gift for me, nor undertake any venture of material consequence in my honour,” he said.
Reflecting on turning 60, the Vice President said the milestone had reinforced his belief that birthdays should be marked through generosity rather than material celebrations.
“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.
“It is an age that asks fewer questions about what one has gathered and far more searching questions about what one has contributed,” Shettima stated.
He therefore asked Nigerians who intended to celebrate him to redirect whatever they would have spent on birthday-related activities to a charity, cause or person of their choice.
“I therefore appeal once again to everyone who wishes me well not to spend money marking my day, but to channel whatever resources they may have intended for such gestures to a charity, cause or person of their choice anywhere in our country,” he said.
Shettima stressed that acts of kindness, irrespective of their size, could have a meaningful impact on those in need.
“A nation is ennobled by the care it extends to those who need the strength of others. Our means may differ, but generosity is not measured only by the size of what we give,” he said.
The Vice President also reflected on the role others had played in his journey to 60, noting that no one reaches a meaningful stage in life entirely through personal effort.
“None of us arrives at sixty, or indeed at any meaningful station in life, entirely by our own strength. We are all beneficiaries of the kindness of family, friends, teachers, colleagues, supporters, well-wishers and, sometimes, strangers who had nothing to gain from extending a hand to us,” he said.
He added that such kindness should be repaid by extending support to others who might never have the opportunity to return the favour.
Shettima also asked Nigerians to make prayers, rather than gifts, advertisements and celebrations, the focus of his birthday.
“What I ask for, in place of advertisements, gifts and celebrations, is prayer. Pray for me, and pray for Nigeria,” he said.
He specifically requested prayers for peace across Nigerian communities, prosperity for citizens and wisdom for the country’s leaders.
“Pray for the peace of our communities, the prosperity of our people, the wisdom of our leaders and the fulfilment of the immense promise of this nation,” the Vice President added.
