By Uche Amunike
The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio has said that the Nigerian government is uncertain about what crime to charge against former Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele.
Speaking during the thanksgiving service of Senator Barinada Mpigi in Koroma, Tai Local Government Area of Rivers State on Sunday, Akpabio criticized the embattled Emefiele, as he spelled out the tough economic situation in the country, harping on the challenges faced by Nigerians, including hunger and their struggle to afford three square meals a day.
His words: ‘Yes, there is insecurity; we are battling to ensure that Nigerians can take three square meals a day. But be rest assured that we campaigned for this job; we campaigned around the country; I will not let you down; we will get to the bottom of it; all we need is your patience.’
He maintained that the type of economic mess and debts that Nigerians have found themselves in, is not readily understandable to them, reiterating that the policies implemented by Emefiele were the direct cause of the ‘weak economy’ inherited by the Tinubu administration.
The Senate President also stated that the federal government is still uncertain about the exact allegations which which to prosecute Emefiele for. He cited options that ranged from ‘illegal possession of firearm’ and ‘printing notes without income’, among others.
Hear him: ‘So, the kind of debt and economic mess that we are in, a lot of people will not understand but I remember President Obama saying that you cannot know Washington until you get to Washington’, he said.
He also stated: ‘So, by the time we went in to look at the economic situation of the country, it was terrible. You know that the former governor of the central bank, we did not even know what to charge him with. Whether to charge him for putting foam on top of the bill or to charge him for illegal possession of firearm or to charge him for printing notes without income, I don’t know what we are going to charge him with’, the Senate President said.
‘But what we can is that yes there is hunger today because of the policies and actions that they took, and we recognise that, and I think every political party should recognise that there is hunger, and we are battling to ensure that Nigerians sleep with their eyes closed’, he added.
He however assured all, that the government is actively doing all in their power to solve the problem of insecurity and improve the living conditions of the citizens of this country.
He also asked Nigerians to exercise patience, stressing that it would not be easy to solve the deep-rooted problems that have existed in the country for the past 60 years, in such a short period of time, even as he reaffirmed the government’s commitment to solving the problems faced by the citizens of the country. He called on everyone to lend their support to the Tinubu administration during this transformative period.
