Emefiele denies buying jets for presidential campaign

The governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, has denied reports making rounds that he has purchased aircraft to support a campaign for him to run for president ahead of the 2023 general elections.

Online reports had surfaced earlier on Wednesday that the Emefiele had bought “three airplanes” for his presidential campaign.

The reports added that the CBN Governor had also been asked to resign from his position.

However, Emefiele, while reacting to the reports his verified Twitter handle, denied the claim.

“Fake news,” the CBN Governor, who opened a new Twitter account on Wednesday, tweeted.

The development comes days after the CBN governor, following his speculated presidential ambition, declared that God will determine his future.

Emefiele, who made this known when a ‘group of his friends’, tagged ‘Friends of Godwin Emefiele’, visited him to clarify issues around the presidential interest, stated that since God anoints leaders, he will leave his fate firmly in the hands of God.

The CBN Governor’s friends, in a statement, confirmed that Emefiele is constitutionally qualified to run for the Presidency and has been under pressure in the past few weeks from different groups to indicate interest in the 2023 Presidency.

Emefiele reportedly told his friends:

*That he remains focused on his job and will continue supporting the Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal government’s economic recovery drive;

*That in his career trajectory, right from his days as a young banker, he never asked, nor lobbied for a job. He was invited by the Board of Directors to be the Chief Executive Officer/Group Managing Director of Zenith Bank as he was an integral part of the team, led by founder Jim Ovia, that transformed Zenith Bank from a start-up to one of Africa’s largest banks with subsidiaries in Ghana, Sierra Leone, Gambia, South Africa, Dubai, China and the United Kingdom;

*Today he remains humbled by President Muhammadu Buhari’s decision to grant him an unprecedented second term as CBN Governor- again without lobbying. Thus he will continue to remain loyal to him and the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

TheStar

Segun Ojo