The Ohanaeze Youths have lashed out at the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, insisting that the immediate-past Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, stabilised the economy which the National Assembly was destroying with its alleged legislative recklessness.
The Ohanaeze youths asserted this in a reaction to Akpabio’s attack on Emefiele at Ikot Ekpene Stadium over the weekend while addressing his kinsmen from Akwa Ibom North-West Senatorial District of Akwa Ibom State, who hosted him and his National Assembly colleagues in a home-coming reception as President of the Senate.
The number three citizen had accused the former CBN governor of leaving behind a “foamy economy”, insisting that the ex-CBN boss “left a very big hole in the national treasury. I still stand by my position.”
However, Ohanaeze Youths, in a statement signed by Mazi Uzor Azubuike, said rather than blaming
Emefiele, Akpabio should come out clean and even apologise to Nigerians for the alleged destruction of the economy already stabilised by the erstwhile CBN Governor due to what they called ‘legislative reckless’ evident in recent allegations of budget padding against the National Assembly.
They said just less than a year ago,
a renowned policy analyst and chartered stockbroker, Arize Nwobu, wrote that Emefiele was a patriot and consummate professional banker under whose leadership CBN had evolved policies that bear relevance to the health and prosperity of the economy.
Nwobu rightly observed that: “Emefiele understands that there has been a global change in the theory and practice of central banking, and that central banks in developing countries play a wider role and serve as financial catalysts by performing both the traditional and non-traditional roles.
“In the face of severe challenges, Emefiele has remained focused and demonstrated determination to safeguard the health of the financial system and economy. The importance of the financial system in driving the economy cannot be overemphasized. Emefiele has stoically ensured financial system stability which is germane.
“His critics fail to appreciate the aberrant nature of the economy which has made it to be obstinate and resistant to guidance and discipline. They also fail to understand that the Nigerian economy is highly sabotaged virtually on all fronts, as a result of which some good intentioned policies can be frustrated. Some of the economic saboteurs include the political class with vested interests and a penchant for corruption and conspicuous consumption, some banks which covertly breach rules for selfish gains.”
Hence, Ohanaeze Youths said: “As if Nwobu was addressing Akpabio, the Senate President and others like him ‘fail to appreciate the aberrant nature of the economy which has made it to be obstinate and resistant to guidance and discipline. They also fail to understand that the Nigerian economy is highly sabotaged virtually on all fronts, as a result of which some good intentioned policies can be frustrated’.
“The National Assembly under Akpabio’s leadership is doing nothing to salvage the Nigerian economy but rather destroying it recklessly. Just recently, stunning revelations were made by Senator Ningi in an Interview with BBC Hausa service that apart from what the National Assembly did on the floor, there was another budget that was done underground which they didn’t know.
“He (Ningi) said the new things they have discovered in the budget were not known to them. They haven’t seen them in the budget that was debated and considered on the floor of the National Assembly. The lawmaker gave example that, it was said that there was a budget of N28 trillion but what was passed was N25 trillion. So there was N3 trillion on top.
“Ningi had insisted that the budget approved by lawmakers was N25 trillion while the one operated by the Federal Government was N28 trillion. He went ahead to say they discovered N3 trillion was inserted into the budget without locations, noting that this was the highest budget padding that happened in Nigerian history under Sen. Akpabio’s watch.”
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