By Suleiman Umaru
It is no longer news that President Muhammadu Buhari, has ordered Godwin Emefiele, Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, governor, who had purchased the ruling All Progressive Congress, APC, Presidential nomination forms through a shadowy group who had paid the party’s N100m fee for it and other Appointees nursing political ambition ’’ to resign or someone will decide for them’’.
Bahir Jamoh, Director General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, who is another political appointee had also paid the sum of N50 million to buy the Kaduna state, governorship nomination forms.
The Katsina state born Nigerian President may have extended the same treatment meted out to the nine ministers by asking them to resign including Rotimi Amaechi, a former governor of Rivers state and minister of Transportation to the Political Appointees because they have turned out to be baggage to the government.
Lai Mohammed, minister of Information and Culture, may have dropped a hint on Wednesday, May, 11, 2022, when Amaechi and eight other ministers were asked to go that ‘‘it will be extended to the political ambitious appointees’’.
An aggrieved Buhari who could not hide his feelings had told Emefiele, the CBN, governor and the other appointees nursing political ambitions ahead of the 2023, general elections to resign. The Nigerian President was said to have made it clear to the political appointees that anyone who fails to resign to pursue his or her political ambition would have ‘’someone decide for them’’, meaning that the official would be sacked.
Garba Shehu, a Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, may have shocked Nigerians when he disclosed that the Presidential directive asking the political Appointees to resign was not unexpected. ‘‘We are dealing with a government policy, a government directive, a circular of the government issued by Boss Mustapha, Secretary to the government of the Federation and duly approved by the President which clearly states ‘‘who is to go’’, he had said.
The question on the lips of most people was: how did the ministers who have Presidential ambition raised the N100 million to buy the APC, Presidential nomination forms. It is instructive to note that the ruling APC, had put the expression of interest form at N30 million and the nomination form at N70 million, bringing the total amount to purchase the APC Presidential nomination forms at N100 million to contest the 2023, general elections.
. The governorship ticket, the party had approved N50 million for both expression of interests and nomination forms, while the Senate and House of Representatives aspirants were made to pay N20 million and N10 million respectively. Aspirants for state Legislative Assembly were said to have paid the least amount of N2 million for both expression of interest and nomination forms.
The purchase of the APC Presidential nomination forms by Emefiele, the CBN, may hav given the PDP, room, to call for the investigation of the CBN governor by EFCC. Abdulrasheed Bawa, Chairman Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, had said that ‘‘the commission official is working behind the political space to ensure that it makes its position known on certain actors within the political scene in this country’’
The Commission may have discovered that some of the aspirants wanting, including the political Appointees, seeking elective office that the anti-graft agency, may have secretly recommended to the Katsina state born Nigerian President to give them a soft landing to resign or sack them to give room for an indept investigations to ascertain how the ministrs raised the N100 millions to buy the APC Presidential nominations forms, and those for vying for Governorship position raised N50 million to buy the nomination forms.
This is an indication that some of the Presidential and governorship aspirants might be guests of the EFCC after the party primaries, particular, APC, to explain how they came about the huge amount used in purchasing the party nomination forms to contest the 2023, general elections.
Shehu, thee SSSA, to the President may have replied those calling on the Nigerian President to probe the APC Presidential aspirants, noting that’’it is not necessary for the President to carry out such probes when there are anti-graft agencies.
The EFCC boss had told those cares to listen that ‘’when it comes to the issue of funds as well as the Candidates funds that has to do with the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, the Commission and other related agencies are ‘‘working together to ensure they follow the money and to know the source, whether it is legitimate or illegitimate’’.
It is not surprising why fear has gripped some of the aspirants who had used shadowy groups to buy the APC Presidential nomination forms.
