As news continues to make rounds that the incumbent Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele is interested in joining the country’s presidential race, many concerned Nigerians have individually called for his resignation or be sacked by the President.
A report from a reliable source has disclosed that an interest group had already picked the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential forms for Mr Emefiele. However, it was later reported that the supposed beneficiary of the gesture made a u-turn and rejected it, saying he was yet to respond to the calls for him to join the race.
Nigeria’s former Minister of Education, Oby Ezekwesili has called on the Governor of the apex bank to resign and stop embarrassing Nigeria.
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Mrs Ezekwesili’s reaction followed reports that Mr Emefiele picked the APC N100 million presidential Nomination and Expression of Interest forms on Friday, 6th May 2022 in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
“I just read your waffling neither-here-nor-there tweet reacting to news of your payment of N100m for the APC Nomination form for 2023 Presidential election.” Mrs Ezekwesili tweeted.
“Seems you did not read what the APC Spokesperson said to @Bloomberg. Resign. Stop embarrassing the country. Stop.”
The former minister also alleged that Mr Emefiele handed over the apex bank’s control to the president since he assumed office, adding the ‘ill-advised monetary policies’ of the bank in the last seven years were political.
“The wrong monetary policies put in place by Mr Emefiele’s CBN since Buhari assumed office in 2015 were testament that the bank had handed over its independence to the president.” she opined.
The erstwhile minister therefore asked the CBN boss to resign his position and pursue his ‘ill-fated political career’.
“The Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria @cenbank must now immediately tender his resignation to stop further destroying whatever little remains of the country’s monetary policy reputation,” she said.
It’s noteworthy that Mr Emefiele has been subject of criticisms since posters and other campaign messages promoting his political ambition surfaced across Nigeria in recent weeks.
The Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, had also called on Mr Emefiele to resign from his position immediately, following his intent to engage in partisan politics and contest the 2023 presidential election.
In a statement he personally signed on Friday, the very day Mr Emefiele reportedly picked the presidential forms, Mr Akeredolu asked the president to fire Emefiele if he refused to voluntarily resign.
The Ondo governor described the CBN governor’s partisan move as ‘a joke taken too far’.
Mr Emefiele is indeed taking Nigeria’s polity, in its entirety, to a state of ridicule, to assert the least; hence, deserves to be stopped. If he is interested in joining active and partisan politics, he needn’t be reminded or notified that he’s required to take a bow as the CBN Governor.
Even at the moment, he has succeeded in making the outside world see Nigeria as a place meant to display comic skits. How could he think of joining the 2023 political race without tendering his resignation?
Despite being a failure as the governor of the apex bank, he still nurtures interest in piloting the affairs of the country come 2023. I have earlier thought he was rather thinking of emerging as the next governor of Delta State, where he hails from. But to have reportedly picked the presidential forms, means he is really up to something.