New naira: Bagudu, Akeredolu absent as 10 APC govs meet

No fewer than 10 governors turned up for the crucial meeting between the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, and state chief executives at the national headquarters of the party on Sunday.

The development is coming barely one week to the presidential and National Assembly polls slated for Saturday, February 25.

In attendance were governors Nasir El-Rufai (Kaduna), Abdullahi Sule (Nasarawa), Muhammad Inuwa Yahaya (Gombe), Mai Mala Buni (Yobe), Abubakar Badaru (Jigawa) and Abubakar Sani Bello (Niger), Yahaya Bello (Kogi), Simon Lalong (Plateau), Biodun Oyebanji (Ekiti), Sani Bello (Niger) and members of the National Working Committee of the party.

The absence of governors Abdullahi Ganduje (Kano), Atiku Bagudu (Kebbi), Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Lagos) and virtually all his counterparts in the South was felt.

Also present were representatives of the Imo and Katsina states’ governors.

Addressing journalists shortly before their closed-door meeting, Adamu said, “It is my privilege to welcome you to this important and emergency meeting. We have found a situation where there is a pressing need to get together as standard bearers of our states in Nigeria who were elected on the platforms of our great party, the APC.

“I am happy with the response so far. And it is my understanding that more of the governors are on their way coming. You will recall the recent development that has necessitated the need for this invitation.

“We do not want to seat in the judgement of anybody or bodies with regards to what is going on today in the country as it affects our great party. I thought it best to get all those who are holding forth in the critical positions in the party to get together and have some interaction so that we can have a better interpretation and appreciation of the situation that we are in. That is the essence of this invitation.”

Although, the agenda on the programme of the event reflected ‘Interactions’ and ‘Preparations for the general election’, the APC chairman’s speech connoted that the talks would also bother on the current friction between the President, Major General Muhammadu (retd.), and some aggrieved governors over the naira redesign policy.

In the last four weeks, a considerable of Nigerians has been subjected to untold hardship.

The PUNCH reported how a pocket of violent protests, bank vandalisations took place in several states, notably in Oyo, Lagos, Rivers, Ogun and Edo States.

The lingering cash squeeze policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria was further worsened following the declaration by the president that the CBN should allow only the old N200 to co-exist with the new naira notes.

Hours after his broadcast, Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State had addressed his people, saying the former military head of state was wrong on his directive to re-introduce just the old N200 banknote as part of measures to curb the cash crunch in the country.

A livid El-Rufai, who said the old N1,000 and N500 notes are still legal tenders in his state, did not mince words when he stated that the aim of the naira redesign was to scuttle the general election and give room for an interim government.

The friction between the governors and the President reached an unprecedented height on Friday when the APC Campaign Council was compelled to release a statement to debunk claim that its presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, asked some APC governors to disregard the directive of the president.

While stating that it was fake news being peddled by an online platform, the Director of Media and Publicity for the APC PCC, Bayo Onanuga, noted that the alleged information did not emanate from the PCC Adviser on Media and Communications, Dele Alake, as being alleged.

(Punch)