….gives reason why it shelved planned protest at CBN
The Conference of Nigeria Political Parties, CNPP, on Tuesday, called on President Muhammadu Buhari to sack the Governor of the Central Ban of Nigeria (CBN) Godwin Emiefele over his intention to contest the Presidency in 2023.
This is as they threatened to persuade serving judicial officers to pick up nomination forms from political parties of their choice, should President Buhari, fail to sack Emefiele.
The coalition, said it was dismayed that the CBN Governor “has not only picked presidential nomination forms, but has also gone to court to seek prayers to be allowed to contest in the All Progressive Congress, APC, presidential primaries”.
The CNPP, in a world press conference it held alongside the Coalition of National Civil Society Organizations (CNCSOS), on what it termed as “the now obvious decimation of Nigerian laws”, equally adduced reasons why it shelved its earlier planned protest against Emefiele.
It said the protest was aborted after it got information that some hoodlums were hired to attack its members.
“Their intention was to course breach of peace as a licence for security agencies to give the protesters the #EndSARS treatment. In this light, the hired hoodlums were to sneak into the crowd of protesters and attack the CBN headquarters with weapons while a counter protest was also arranged for the same day”.
In the joint statement that was signed by the Convener/CNPP Secretary General, Chief Willy Ezugwu and the National Secretary for the CSOs, Alhaji Ali Abacha, the coalition, insisted that Emefiele’s declaration for president, was in clear violation of the Public Service rules and the CBN Act.
“Our findings revealed that Mr. Godwin Emefiele joined the APC and became a card carrying member of the party in 2019, which proved that the CBN governor’s presidential ambition was premeditated and has been in his plans before 2019 when he eventually joined partisan politics.
“This is contrary to the Mr. Godwin Emefiele’s position that his focus was on his job at the CBN.
“Emefiele’s declaration for president is in clear violation of the Public Service rules and the CBN Act.
“In line with the establishment of the CBN by law as an independent bank by virtue of Section 1 (3) of the CBN Act, its governor should be non-partisan but here we have a card carrying member of APC since 2019 as governor of Nigeria’s apex bank and financial regulatory institution.
“In the light of the above, we maintain our position that Mr. Godwin Emefiele must resign before seeking nomination as a presidential aspirant and before participating in APC presidential primaries and that in line with the CBN Act, Mr. Emefiele must show evidence that he has submitted his letter of resignation to President Muhammadu Buhari three months before the date of purchase of his nomination forms which are in his name.
“Whether purchased by proxy or by himself, what is important is that the forms were purchased with his name on the receipt as a valid evidence of payment of the N100 million expression of interest and nomination forms. We call on President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately sack Mr. Godwin Emefiele as the CBN Governor over gross misconduct in line with the Public Service Rules and CBN Act for registering as a member of APC since 2019.
“We demand that President Buhari act swiftly to restore the confidence of international investors in Nigeria’s economy as Godwin Emefiele is clearly a politician and former banker.
“If Mr. President allows this impunity to continue, we then call on all judges, justices and judicial officers to pick up their nomination forms from political parties of their choice”, the group stated.
