Emefiele is an Igbo man from Delta State, and in the calculation of some northern power brokers, his presidency will meet those agitating for a Nigerian president of South East extraction half way
Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Godwin Emefiele, may be the latest presidential aspirant on the bloc if he yields to the call of his supporters.
There have been hush talks that Aso Rock grandees, including President Muhammadu Buhari’s nephew, Mamman Daura, and Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, may be considering Emefiele among several others for the top job.
Other nominees of the cabal include Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, former President Goodluck Jonathan or a northerner in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
According to a Peoples Gazette report, an Emefiele candidacy may douse the tension of the Igbo who have not produced a president or vice president since 1999.
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Emefiele is an Igbo man from Delta State, and in the estimation of some northern power brokers, this will meet the South East half way and douse the agitation for Igbo presidency.
The Gazette report quoted an official of the CBN close to Emefiele as saying: “He has not made up his mind, but he is certainly moving in that direction.”
The report says Emefiele, being at the helm of the apex bank since 2014, supporters argued that as the most-senior political office-holder of Igbo origin at the federal level, Emefiele should be allowed to take the ruling party’s ticket in 2023.
Also, a coalition group; The Green Alliance, held a press conference on Saturday solely for the purpose of begging Emefiele to run for the presidency.
Addressing other supporters, Wale Fapohunda, who convened the group, lavished praises on the CBN governor and outlined reasons to encourage his candidacy.
“This forum has come together to come and plead and beg Godwin Emefiele to run as president of Nigeria in 2023.
“He introduced a multiple exchange rate regime to try to mask pressure on the Naira and avoid a series of devaluations. He has engineered bank policies and programmes that have supported job creation and fostered inclusive growth, in addition to key macroeconomic concerns such as inflation and exchange rate stability.
“He has come up with new strategies to navigate the Nigerian economy through hurdles such as the challenge of foreign exchange inflow, the exchange rate, the economic recession, stagflation, financial inclusion and the rise in the value chain of the majority of crops in Nigeria,” he added.
Other supporters have already coined ‘Meffy 2023’ as the campaign slogan for the treasury chief, adorned T-shirts and face caps bearing his picture.
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