Tijani Adeyemi
Barely 17 days before the general elections, no fewer than 14 of the 18 registered political parties have threatened to withdraw all participation from the election if the Federal Government and the Central Bank cancel or suspend for whatever reasons the cash withdrawal limit and Naira redesign policies.
This position was made known on Monday at a joint world press conference by the Forum of Chairmen of Nigerian Political Parties and the Forum of Candidates for the 2023 General Election.
The candidate’s forum comprised Presidential, National Assembly, Governorship and House of Assembly Candidates.
In the text read by the Spokesperson of the Forum Chief Barr. Kenneth Udeze, the National Chairman of Action Alliance and flanked by other National Chairmen, Presidential candidates, Governorship, Senatorial and House of Representatives as well as House of Assembly candidates declared that “We hereby announce our resolution that at least 14 0f the 18 political parties in Nigeria will not be interested in the 2023 general election and indeed we shall withdraw all our participation from the electoral process if these currency policies are suspended or cancelled or if the deadline is further shifted.
The Forum stated that the policy will enhance the credibility of the 2023 election “In fact, if these policies are implemented fully and without shifting the deadline of 10th February 2023 date, President Muhammadu Buhari would have taken a very huge step closer to fulfilling his promise to the world that the 2023 general election would be credible, free and fair.”
Continuing, Chief Udeze raised alarm saying, “We have intercepted very credible intelligence of a well-financed plot to instigate violent disturbances, incite and provoke civil unrest aimed at undermining the President and causing a shift in the election date or causing his administration to come to an abrupt end. We were approached to lend our support, generous promises were made but we believe that Nigeria comes first before any other mundane consideration.”
Explaining further, the group alleged that the sponsors of the planned violent disturbances included Governors of both the APC and PDP including Gov El-Rufai of Kaduna, Ganduje of Kano, Hope Uzodimma of Imo, Nyesom Wike of Rivers, Sanwo-Olu of Lagos and Rotimi Akeredolu of Lagos and called “on the State Security Service to put these governors on the watch list as they are seriously mobilizing miscreants to begin as quickly as possible protests which will no commence from naira scarcity protests and graduate quickly to Buhari Must Go protests which is the ultimate aim, where the President refuses to bulge and shift the policy. “
“These evil plans are targeted at coinciding the disturbances with the 7-day grace Mr President asked Nigerians to grant him to solve the problem of the Naira crunch.
The political parties and the candidates thereafter passed a resounding vote of confidence on the two CBN policies and commended President Buhari for his rare courage in taking these tough decisions for the good of the people.
The group also called on bank CEOs to do what is right and not abuse their offices to bring hardship to the people.
“We are warning bank managers because we have our eyes on them, let what happened before not happen again where CBN delivered the new notes to them and many of them delivered it to the warehouses of some politicians while some began to trade on it following the artificial scarcity which they caused. POS operators who are mostly agents of the banks cannot get money from the banks. ATMs are not working, Bank online applications are not now working yet CBN delivered enough cash to these banks.”
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