Former President Muhammadu Buhari has clarified the reasons behind his decision not to dismiss the former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, despite the speculations surrounding Emefiele’s potential presidential ambition during the 2023 elections.
Buhari revealed that he refrained from removing Emefiele due to the lack of concrete evidence supporting the assertion that he was actively pursuing a presidential ambition.
Buhari revealed this in a memoir titled ‘Working with Buhari: Reflections of a Special Adviser, Media and Publicity (2015 – 2023),’ written by his former Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, and presented in Abuja on Tuesday.
In the memoir, Buhari was quoted to have said, “When he (Emefiele) was linked with the campaign for the 2023 presidency, I did not ask him, because he told nobody he was getting involved. Otherwise, I would have removed him and told the nation why.”
Buhari stated that “unless there was firm evidence against him,” it would be “unfair”, and “an act of injustice to remove him, acting on hearsay.”
The former president added, “If you punish a man unjustly, it could dog his footsteps throughout life, so if you would punish, you must have evidence and you should know that yourself wouldn’t be there forever. You would leave one day.
“I’m very conscious about the morale of people who serve with me. I also expect whoever succeeds me to be fair to me. I have family, friends, who will feel it. I’m very conscious of fairness.”
At the book unveiling event on Tuesday, President Bola Tinubu stated that his predecessor, Buhari, has not meddled in his administration since departing from government in 2023.
“After handing over, you (Buhari) said, ‘I will be far away in Daura but if you need me, contact me. I won’t intrude on whatever you are doing. I won’t interfere. I won’t breathe down on your throat.”
On Saturday, May 7, 2022, Emefiele expressed that he was seeking divine guidance on whether to participate in the All Progressives Congress presidential primary scheduled for the end of the month.
He also mentioned that entering the contest would require dipping into his “hard-earned savings” amassed over 35 years of service.
Emefiele’s response came shortly after a coalition of farmers and business individuals procured the N100 million nomination and expression of interest forms on his behalf at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, where the forms were being sold.
The group encouraged the CBN boss to vie for the presidential position.