Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole has said that those clamouring for the removal of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, Godwin Emefiele, are just wasting their time. This was disclosed to the media Wednesday in Benin City, the Edo State capital.
According to Oshiomhole, “He thereafter, supported the governor’s position saying, “I think the CBN governor is right in standing his ground and those oppose to it are free to speculate. I know that President Muhammadu Buhari will not be fooled by such charade. Tell the agitators that they are wasting their time.”
Nigeria now has a new Federal Government that has won an election, on the basis of the change mantra, Oshiomhole said.
“However, we must be aware that there are all kinds of people who have made money from this economy without contributing anything, people who make money by just manipulating the exchange rate. It is these speculators that forced the CBN governor to make a firm pronouncement that Nigeria will not just open up its economy for importation or all manners of things with readily available local substitute,” Oshiomhole said.
These people who have been feeding fat on the exchange rate are the ones behind this campaign of sack the CBN governor, also in the league are opportunists who believes that if Emefiele is removed they stand the chance of becoming the CBN governor, and they are ready to go to any length, the governor said.
“I want to inform them that President Buhari’s government has made it very clear that the hiring and firing of a CBN governor need not be a political decision, we should respect institutions, the decision to retain or fire the CBN governor will not be based on the request of faceless agitators, when you unmask the people behind this call they are basically nonentities,” he said.
He reminded the media that the challenge of running the economy was so enormous now coupled with limited inflow of forex, and you do not want to trigger a process that would lead to endless devaluations, to the extent of reducing naira to Zimbabwe’s dollar.
In the same vein, Etuk Bassey Williams, president, Coalition of Civil Society Groups (CCSG) in Nigeria, has endorsed the activities and policies of the CBN under the leadership of Emefiele. This was in reaction to a publication by a shadowy, bogus and unscrupulous group parading itself as a civil society organisation threatening a protest against the CBN Governor.
The executive committee of the CCSG in Nigeria said “it wishes to put it on record and make it categorically clear that the phony group in reference is not (and has never been) a civil society organisation and is therefore not recognised by the CCSG in Nigeria.”
Regardless of how this group intends to mask itself as a civil society organisation, its independent research reveals that it is in fact a political organisation of paid agents and sponsored groups representing the interest of a certain geopolitical zone in the country.
The political nature of their agenda shows that their intentions are not by any means noble, and their objectives are far from making the lives of ordinary Nigerian a little bit better. The promoters of this group are persons who are known to be troublesome and have the capacity to disrupt the public peace.
According to Williams, the executive committee of CCSG fully appreciates the difficulties and anxieties of many Nigerians given the tough economic times that are confronting us. But one man did not cause this situation or one institution, and therefore, it is rather unfair to try to put the blame on any one person or organisation. What we need right now are collective and constructive solutions to our structural problems rather than scapegoating.
He said “even if we must “scapegoat”, should it be against a man or an institution that have been at the vanguard of protecting ordinary Nigerians from the disastrous effects of the global shocks due to the sharp drop in oil prices? We must note that the prevailing difficult economic condition is not limited to Nigeria. It is global and more entrenched among developing and emerging markets.
“Compared to its peers, the Nigerian economy has not performed poorly. Among commodities exporting economies for instance, inflation, GDP growth and employment are far worse in countries like Zambia, Ghana, and Argentina with inflation between 19-28 percent. As a matter of fact, Brazil and Russia are in recession while South Africa is struggling to record positive growth.
“These are all linked to the fall in the commodities prices in the international market. Emefiele and the CBN have so far managed to keep the inflation far below what is being witnessed in many comparator countries.”
Speaking further, the president of CCSG said: “We believe that the policies of the Emefiele led CBN are indeed aimed at protecting ordinary Nigerians from the destructive capitalistic instincts of a few plutocrats and bourgeoisies.
“Emefiele’s policies have truncated the rent-seeking ability of many of these economic parasites and saboteurs. And we believe it is for this singular reason that both Emefiele and the CBN are being vilified in the most unfair and disgraceful manner by a sponsored group of anarchists.”