By Precious Oham
A Civil Society Organization, Journalists for Open Government & Inclusion (JOGI) has accused President Muhammadu Buhari of working with anti-democratic elements to truncate the presidential poll over the currency crisis in the country.
The group warned that the growing anger in the land due to the currency scarcity could snow ball into civil unrest, unless the government act responsibly.
The Executive Director of JOGI, Comrade Yaqoub Popoola, in a release said it was quite unfortunate that a government that is still battling with poverty and insecurity could allow the nation slide into chaos due to needless, irresponsible and Ill-conceived policy.
The group urged the President to direct the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria( CBN) to respect the Supreme Court verdict on the matter and allow the old and new currency to float side by side in the open market.
“In case Mr President did not know, the worst form of corruption is the disobedience to court orders. Again, any government that initiates a policy without a proper implementation plan and strategy is also indulging in corruption.
“As we speak, most Banks in the country have been shut down due to fear of being attack by angry residents and President Buhari still finds it convenient to dish out insane directives.
“It is also clear that Buhari and his voodoo economic advisers are working in cahoots with anti-democratic elements in the country to truncate the Presidential poll.
“How on earth would a government deny the people access to their legitimate earnings and expect them not be vulnerable to vote- trading during elections? When you deliberately impoverished the people, you are making them vulnerable to all forms of abuse. This is pure madness!
“With the untidy manner the CBN is going about the implementation of its naive policy ,the level of vote-trading in the General Election would be unimaginable.
“Since the wake of this crazy policy many lives have been lost while a number of public infrastructures, including Commercial Banks have also been destroyed. Angry Nigerians are beginning to regroup with a view to launch a massive civil unrest and a government supposedly planning peaceful and credible elections for Nigerians is not seeing the handwriting on the wall.
“The truth of the matter is that the CBN under headship of Emefiele is grossly incompetent to carry out any honest economic reform or fight corruption since itself, an harbinger of corruption.
“If we may ask, how was the new notes found their way into the hands of hawkers ,even when they are not available in the Banks? It is simple logic Emefiele who could not stop his men from corruption and sharp practises cannot lead any genuine anti-corruption war in Nigeria.” Enough of this madness.”
