The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele has denied purchasing three aircraft to support his campaign for his 2023 presidential bid.
He described the online report that surfaced on Wednesday as “fake news.”
The reports on Wednesday indicated that Emefiele had purchased three jets for his presidential campaign in 2023 and had been asked to resign from his position.
But in tweet, the CBN governor said it was fake news.
The report, believed to have emanated from those that see Emefiele as a major threat to their political ambition, comes days after he spoke on the calls for him to contest the presidency in 2023.
A group under the aegis of Friends of the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, had said people, especially in the political cycle who are afraid of his outstanding achievements and integrity, are sponsoring negative reports against him to damage his reputation.
This followed media reports on the purported interest of the CBN governor in the 2023 presidential race.
According to the group, the mere rumour that Emefiele was going to contest the 2023 presidential has led to stampede by interested parties and vested interests whom, it said, had resorted to all sorts of blackmail, sponsored articles and choreographed comments on social media targeted at tainting his image in order to impugn his character and legacy.
“Clearly, the negative attacks are being sponsored by those who see Emefiele as a major threat to their political ambition,” the group said in a statement entitled: Who is Afraid of Godwin Emefiele? He’s Not Even Sneezing and They Are Catching Cold!
The Friends of Emefiele expressed worry that the negative campaigns are high even as Emefiele has not confirmed to anyone that he is running for president, even as it said he has been under pressure in the past few weeks as different groups have been putting up unsolicited campaigns for his candidacy.
The group said those behind the sponsored negative reports are afraid of Emefiele’s towering personality and service to Nigeria “but they must understand that he cannot be stampeded anyway.”