The Presidency has restated that President Muhammadu Buhari has a favoured successor in the Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Senior Special Assistant to the President (Media & Publicity), Garba Shehu, made the clarification in a statement issued on Friday, February 17, 2023.
The clarification became necessary against the backdrop of allegation that the naira swap policy was meant to truncate the chances of Tinubu in the February 25th presidential election.
But the presidential spokesman stated that there is no need to panic over the policy, though he admitted that the procedure is laced with problems.
Shehu believed that in a week’s time, Nigerians will vote for the APC on the basis of their choice.
“Finally, to state that: the President clearly has a favoured successor in Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, is not in doubt.
“The fact that Tinubu has been opposed to the speed and timing of the Naira swap timetable does not mean he is against the idea of Nigeria becoming a cashless society. Of course, Tinubu does support a cashless society: for he is a man of the future.”
The Presidency maintained that the naira policy was not meant to allow President Buhari to stay beyond May 29, 2023.
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It also ruled out an Interim Government.
“Let us clearly, specifically and emphatically state that there is absolutely no truth to the claim that President Muhammadu Buhari is working towards an interim government or even worse, the truncation of democracy- democracy that he has helped to keep alive not only here at home, in West Africa but throughout the continent.
“The talk of interim government and truncation of democracy is way off the mark. Those who peddle it stand to gain nothing- nothing at all -but the creation of panic and the incitement of the public against the federal government.
It is another dangerous dimension by people who are afraid that they may lose their elections,” he said.
Shehu added: “What should be made crystal clear to the doubters and the speculators and the untruth-tellers is that in no way was the naira swap “engineered” to keep the President in office beyond May 29. Nothing could be further from the truth.
“The President looks forward to handing over the reins of power to his elected successor. This will happen on May 29, 2023 as the Constitution requires it.
The days of unelected Nigerian leaders, and those who outstay their welcome by unconstitutionally extending it, have gone.”
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