- He will transform Nigeria – Ex-envoy Iji
By Banji Ayoola
Against the background of worsening hardship across the land due to the cash crisis following the naira design policy of the Federal Government, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has debunked allegations that its governor, Godwin Emefiele, was plotting against the president-elect, Bola Tinubu.
Emefiele reportedly resolved to work against Tinubu, because he failed to get the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential ticket and allegedly mobilised N500 million to the Labour Party (LP) governorship candidate in Lagos State, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, for his campaign.
It was further alleged that the money given to Rhodes-Vivour was Emefiele’s contribution for another party to wrest Lagos from Tinubu’s stranglehold.
However, CBN spokesperson, Isa Abdulmumin, described the allegation as false and malicious, noting that Emefiele had neither met nor spoken with Rhodes-Vivour in person or through proxy.
He said that Emefiele does not take part in politics, and called on anyone with contrary information to prove the governor wrong to provide facts. He added that the CBN governor and his team should be allowed to focus on their assigned tasks.
Meanwhile, former Nigerian Ambassador to the Republic of Togo, Sola Iji, has stated that with the emergence of Bola Tinubu as president-elect, the country will attain the desired greatness under his watch.
In a congratulatory message to Tinubu on his victory at the February 25 presidential election, Iji, who is the Coordinator of Asiwaju Tinubu/Shettima Coalition for Good Governance (ATSCGG) in the South West, disclosed that the growth in Lagos during Tinubu’s tenure as governor will be witnessed in Nigeria.
The ex-envoy noted in a statement issued on his behalf by the Onibudo of Ugboland in Ondo State and a member of the Election Planning and Monitoring Committee of the APC.’s PCC., Chief ‘Wole Iroaye, that the victory has further rekindled the hope of Nigerians in the country.
Iji said: “Tinubu’s victory at the election means so much for the much-expected rapid socio-economic transformation of Nigeria, which is fabulously endowed with human, material and natural resources, more than other nations in Africa and even outside the continent.
“Tinubu seems to have been preparing, over the years, for the highly taxing office of President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria with the numerous leadership positions he has held both in the private and public sectors in and outside Nigeria.” He described Tinubu as an exceptional leader of men with his superlative records of performance as a brilliant professional, a technocrat and pro-democracy activist.
Tinubu, according to Iji, stands on solid ground to galvanise the talents and potential that abound in the country into a productive economy that will soon be a model for other African countries and even rival the developed economies of Europe and America.”
Iji also congratulated Nigerians, who he said had “demonstrated through their popular mandate given to Tinubu, that they are ready for the replica at the national level of the magic through which Asiwaju as a two-term Governor between 1999 and 2007, had transformed Lagos to an economic miracle and a model for all the states of the Nigerian federation.”
He said: “Tinubu’s victory at the election means so much for the much expected rapid socio-economic transformation of Nigeria, which is fabulously endowed with human, material and natural resources
more than other nations in Africa and even outside the continent.”
The Radiance reports the former envoy saying : “Tinubu seems to have been preparing over the years for the highly tasking office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria with the numerous leadership positions he has held both in the private and public sectors in and outside Nigeria.”
Also, he noted that “in each of the leadership positions or political offices he has ever held, the President-Elect had performed excellently, drawing a large corpus of some of the nation’s brightest stars made up of brilliant, highly and result oriented professionals who he had recognised and whose developments he had supported.”
“With his rich experience, Tinubu, according to Iji, stands on a solid ground to galvanise the talents and potentials that abound in this Country into a productive economy that will soon be a model for all other African and developing countries, and even rival the developed economies of Europe and America.
“The former envoy assured Nigerians that the Messiah who they had for long been expecting to turn the fortunes of their Country around in the overall interest of all citizens regardless of ethnic, religious or whatever any other backgrounds, has arrived in Tinubu.
In Iji’s words: “This is an exceptional leader of men with his superlative records of performance as a brilliant professional, a technocrat, an exemplary family man, sociable and affable, a celebrated hero of this Country’s pro-democracy struggles, a selfless and compassionate political leader of note who has invested in the development of human beings, most of who today occupy sensitive positions in and even outside the shores of this country, an ex-Governor and a former National Leader of the ruling party, the APC.”
He added that “a new day breaks for Nigeria, where, united, we will all stand with our new Leader as he struggles genuinely to build a new Nigerian State where no one will further be oppressed or discriminated against on the basis of his or her ethnic, religious or whatever other backgrounds; where we will all work in harmony with one another to live peacefully and tackle together all the challenges that have been confronting us under the visionary leadership of our newly elected President in waiting.”
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC.), had declared the APC.’s Flag-bearer and former Lagos State’s Governor as the winner of the keenly contested election, throwing his supporters across the country into a wild jubilation for what they generally describe as a well deserved victory.
According to the results as announced by the INEC., Tinubu polled 8,794,726 votes to beat his closest challenger from the People’s Democratic Party, PDP., and ex-Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, who scored 6,984,520 votes, with about two million votes; Labour Party (LP)’s Peter Obi, who got 6,101,533; and Rabiu Kwankwaso of the NNPP who came a distant fourth with 1,496,687 votes.
Total votes cast was 24,965,218, out of which 939,278 were rejected.
Both Tinubu and Atiku won out-rightly in 12 States each while Obi and Kwankwaso won in 11 states and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT., and one State respectively.
