Chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, says those trying to incite Nigerians against the federal government over the Naira redesign are rampaging saboteurs affected by the Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN) new monetary policy who have huge cash criminally gotten from public funds stashed in warehouses, septic tanks and homes.
In a statement made available to media houses in Port Harcourt, Eze said the policy though a difficult one, is necessary and strategic in the restoration of the lost value of the Naira against convertible currencies and one would expect leaders across political divide to support the initiative. The Naira has a long history of progressive downward pressure in the forex market and efforts have been devised to bring it to par with its contemporaries in the money market.
The party Chief however stated that it is disappointing to learn that those who prided themselves as patriots and change agents, who rode to power through the change mantra and who have benefited so much from the Buhari/APC administration are the ones at the forefront of the war against this policy of the federal government because the policy is gradually rendering useless the wads of stolen money stashed in their safes and private warehouses.
He said self-serving individuals who are making very untoward and negative utterances in a bid to incite the people and usurp the authority of the President is unhealthy for the country.
“It does appears in fact, that some Governors are running parallel federal governments in their respective states with the counter orders they have continued to dish out against the lawful directives of the President who is the commander-in-Chief and numero uno in the government of Nigeria.
“For the Executive Governor of Kano State to turnaround and publicly declare that President Buhari and his administration for eight years didn’t achieve anything is very unfortunate. It is a comment made out of ill-will to serve personal interest.
“In other words, the efforts of this administration in the areas of road and rail Infrastructure are no longer noteworthy. For the Governor of Kaduna State to issue a contrary directive to that of the Federal Government and inciting the poor masses against the APC administration is totally unacceptable.
“If for the duration of over three months some economically powerful persons could not return the heavy wads of cash stored in their homes to their accounts, it clearly means that such calibre of Nigerians have ulterior motive in not returning such monies into the banking system”.
Eze commended President Buhari’s insistence in ensuring that the 2023 elections are free and fair and credible, noting that one good legacy the APC administration will be leaving behind is the record of credible polls and the president must be commended for that.
He said those relying on the use of stoked-up cash to aid their vote buying mechanism to win election should replan or better still get ready to retire because corruption has lost its grip on Nigerian elections beginning from Saturday, February 25, 2023.
The party Chief commended the Central Bank of Nigeria for making cash available for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to execute the elections without a hitch and expressed confidence that votes will count and the will of majority will superintend at the end of the day.
He urged Nigerians to wash their eyes and ensure that those that have ruined our nation, who are glaringly pursuing personal interests are not brought to power for any reason whatsoever.
Eze expressed fear of the outcome of the general elections particularly if it doesn’t favour some of these elements that are sponsoring the destruction of our banks, adding that they are capable also of causing serious havoc if the elections fail to favour them.
“In this case, the Security Agencies should up their game to avoid these elements from setting up this country on fire if they fail to win this election”, he advised.
Meantime, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, on Thursday, said that President Muhammadu Buhari has not acted in breach on the case instituted at the Supreme Court by some state governors over the naira swap deadline.
The Malami said as far as the rule of law is concerned, there are many options available.
The is just as the Federal Government has said that the fate of state governors and other individuals being investigated for alleged treasonable utterances over the naira redesign will be determined by the security agencies involved.
The government also said that it was only few individuals that are promoting the interest of some persons that may have gotten their wealth illegally and looted public funds, which they intend to use to influence the electorate in the forthcoming elections.
Malami stated this while appearing on the ministerial media briefing organized by the Presidential Communications Team at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Recall that some governors, including Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna State and Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano state had openly denigrated the Buhari policy, asking their citizens not to comply with the expiration of the legality of the old N500 and N1,000.
The two governors are among the governors that had gone to the Supreme Court to stop the February 10 deadline given by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, from ceasing to recognize the N500 and N1000 naira notes as legal tender.
Fielding question on the position in some quarters that the utterances of the governors was tantamount to treason, the AGF affirmed that investigation cannot be ruled out, adding that the relevant security agencies will determine if there will be the need for further action.
Malami stressed the importance of the redesign policy, which he said will enable citizens to assume collective ownership of the electoral system rather than allowing a few moneybags to take charge.
He also said the policy is designed to allow freedom of choice and also fight corruption.
Speaking extensively on the benefits of electoral reforms, Malami said it was only the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration that had exercised the political will to enhance democratic practice through legislative, political and administrative interventions.
