2023: Resign now, Gov Akeredolu tells CBN Gov Emefiele
The Ondo State Governor, Arakunrin Rotimi Akeredolu, SAN, on Friday, said the vaunted presidential aspiration of the Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele, is a joke carried too gar.
Consequently, Governor Akeredolu demanded that Emefiele should resign as CBN Governor immediately.
He said he should disengage from the apex bank immediately he declared his intention to join politics and contest for the presidency of the country.
In the alternative, Akeredolu called on the President, Muhammadu Buhari to remove the CBN governor immediately as he presently constitutes a problem to the government and people of Nigeria.
Akeredolu said: “The news of the purchase of Declaration of Intent and Nomination Forms to contest for the office of the President in the forthcoming general elections, on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, purportedly by the supporters of the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr Godwin Emefiele, has been received with palpable disbelief and shock by many Nigerians. This act, if unchecked, timeously, portends great danger to the fragile economy of the country.”
Indications are that there are partisan activities linked to the CBN Governor through these shadowy characters in the recent weeks.
Pictures of branded vehicles, ostensibly purchased for electioneering campaigns, were also posted on the social media. The audacious moves by those who claimed to be supporting this interest have been unsettling;
This latest news confirms that the an All Progressives Congress, APC, presidential nomination form and expression of interest form may have been bought for the CBN Governor.
Akeredolu said it true that Emefiele enjoys a constitutionally protected right to belong to any group or association and participate fully, just as any Nigerian.
He said it is, however, difficult to imagine that a person who occupies the exalted and sensitive office of the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria will be this brazen in actualizing his ambition.
“There is no gain asserting the obvious. The combined effect of the Public Service Rules, CBN Act and the 1999 Constitution, as amended, exposes not only the oddity inherent in this brash exercise of presumed right to associate. It also confirms the illegality of the act should he proceed to submit the forms while occupying the seat as Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria;
“Consequently, we admonish Mr Emefiele to leave the office, immediately, for him to pursue his interest. He cannot combine partisan politics with the very delicate assignment of his office. Should he refuse to quit, it becomes incumbent on the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces to remove him forthwith;
“This is a joke taken too far”.