The Majority Leader of the House of Representatives, Alhassan Ado Doguwa says he suspects that President, Muhammadu Buhari was “misled” into agreeing to the naira redesign policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Doguwa said this while speaking in an interview with Channels Television on Monday. He said the reasons given for the policy at this time are not satisfactory.
Doguwa, who is a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and also the Chairman of the House Adhoc Committee on the redesign of three naira notes, said he believes the President will take the right steps to remedy his action.
In October 2022, Godwin Emefiele, CBN governor, announced the plan to redesign the N200, N500, and N1,000 notes.
Emefiele had asked Nigerians to deposit their old notes before January 31, 2023, when they would cease to be legal tender.
The deadline sparked controversies as Nigerians could not access new notes, and on Sunday, the CBN announced that the president had approved the extension of the deadline for the phase-out of the old naira notes.
Speaking on the development, Doguwa said the 10-day extension is “inconsequential” and a “mere gimmick” of the CBN governor.
“Taking this process as this moment is not only detrimental to the economy of the country, it will be detrimental to the security of the nation and the forthcoming elections,” the lawmaker said.
“Why at this time? Except if they have other peculiar reasons. For someone who wanted to be president and wanted to even purchase a form for nomination and did not get it, I won’t be surprised if the CBN governor is not trying to get a second chance to undermine or scuttle the process of election. This is quite possible.
“This is my personal suspicion. I believe that a good number of my party members have this suspicion – justifiable.
“Every reasonable Nigerian can come up with this analysis that why engaging in redesigning of the naira when you have less than 30 days to the election.
“It is political. It is not even about our presidential candidate. It is about the entirety of those running elections in the APC as a ruling party.
“Perhaps when the president is presented with a misleading briefing that is not quite express to even understand the implications therein, then, definitely, the president is bound to act in the wrong direction. That is my suspicion and that is my own understanding.
“It goes to confirm that if the president was actually briefed initially of the implications and outcome of the naira redesign, he won’t have come out again to say let us extend it by 10 days.”
“So, I am sure Mr President will be one humble leader to understand when he is misled and he should be able to now come to look at the right thing and take the right decision like he is doing now,” Doguwa stated.
He said the House will go ahead to issue an arrest warrant on the apex bank chief should he further fail to honour an invite by the lower chamber.
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