Senate President Godswill Akpabio has urged the new Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso to reject any temptations from politicians to dabble in politics.
The Senate president gave the advice during the screening of Cardoso and four Deputy Governors on Tuesday.
Recall that President Bola Tinubu while nominating Cardoso and others, said their appointment was subject to Senate confirmation.
During their confirmation yesterday, Akpabio told the new CBN that he should not behave like his predecessor, Godwin Emefiele who tried to use the naira redesign policy to truncate the 2023 general election.
The former apex bank governor incurred the wrath of not a
few Nigerians after introducing the policy causing serious cash scarcity in the country.
Many Nigerians described the action as political, they also faulted what they described as the former CBN governor’s meddlesomeness in politics, particularly after he joined the presidential race.
For instance, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the APC presidential candidate at the time, accused Emefiele of trying to use the naira redesign policy to stop him from becoming president.
Speaking during the screening of Cardoso on Tuesday, Akpabio told him to reject any plan by politicians to drag him into partisan politics, saying the CBN Governor must uphold the oath of office.
Akpabio told Cardoso, “CBN Governor, will you uphold the integrity, steadfastness – to resist when politicians come to you to join the presidential race and display your posters even as a sitting CBN Governor in political conventions.
“Will you rush to display your profile electronically at political conventions while sitting as a governor because politicians have told you that you have enough money in CBN to do it.
“Don’t forget the fact that the money in the Central Bank isn’t for you. Will you have the courage to resist the temptation to listen to politicians and throw your hat into the ring and go back to your office and sit as CBN Governor?
“Will you rush to sabotage election in Nigeria by going for new notes, two days to election when no country in the world changes new notes under one year, you do your own in 14 days or 11 to see how you can sabotage election in Nigeria.”
Emefiele was sacked by President Tinubu on June 15, and has since been detained by the Department of State Services, DSS over alleged corruption while in office.
