Elections Will Take Place, President Rejects Temporary Government Installation Plan

The allegation that President Muhammadu Buhari is moving toward an interim administration to ensure that elections will take place has been debunked by the presidency.

A spokeswoman for the president, Garba Shehu, said in a statement on Friday that talk of an interim administration and the curtailment of democracy is completely off the mark.

“Talk of an interim administration and the curtailment of democracy is completely off the point. The only thing those selling it stand to gain—absolutely nothing—is the spread of fear and the agitation of the populace against the federal government, according to Shehu.

“That is another risk that those who are worried about losing their elections pose. In less than a week, elections will be held, and Nigerians will cast their votes for the All Progressives Congress, APC, or any other candidate of their choosing.

The presidential communications adviser acknowledged that there was an issue with how the currency transfer had gone, but advised against panicking.

The president is worried about this issue, according to the presidential spokesman, and has opened up a number of channels for consultation with authorities and groups around the nation, which culminated in his broadcast to the country on Thursday morning.

Bola Tinubu is without a doubt Buhari’s preferred candidate to succeed him, he continued.

Shehu’s remarks came in response to a claim made by Nasir El-Rufai, the governor of Kaduna State, that Godwin Emefiele, the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, and his allies in the presidency intended to make life tough for Nigerians.

El-Rufai claimed that they are undermining the government’s efforts and ensuring that the next elections are invalidated in his official state broadcast on Thursday.

According to El-Rufai, the ultimate goal is to have the military take control of Nigeria while also forcing them to intervene to stop the crisis brought on by a way of life that has made millions of Nigerians’ lives intolerable.

View the presidency’s complete statement below:

QUIT JOKING ABOUT THE INTERIM GOVERNMENT, THE ELECTION WILL TAKE PLACE

According to Joseph Goebbels, Adolf Hitler’s head of propaganda, “Repeat a falsehood frequently enough and it becomes the truth.” Before the internet existed, this was in the 1930s.

Let’s state unequivocally, specifically, and emphatically that the assertion that President Muhammadu Buhari is working to establish an interim government or, worse yet, to sever democracy—democracy that he has helped to preserve not only at home, in West Africa, but across the entire continent—is untrue.

The discussion of an interim administration and a limited democracy is completely off-base. The only thing those selling it seek to gain is the spread of panic and the agitation of the populace against the federal authority.
Those who are concerned about losing their elections may find it to be another perilous dimension.

Everyone is aware that there is a lot of pressure on everyone—including the party, its elected officials, its candidates, and law enforcement agencies—as a result of how the currency swap has turned out, but the best course of action is to avoid panicking.

Nobody will deny that there is a problem since one does exist.
The President created many channels for consultation with leaders and groups across the nation since he is particularly concerned about this issue. This consultation culminated in his broadcast to the nation on Thursday morning.

His order that the issue of the cash supply must be dealt with right away is consistent with the speech and is clear and unequivocal.

There is no need to panic while this is being done. As leaders, as a people, and as a country, we must cooperate. When panic strikes, people react hysterically. No one is aided by shouting because nobody can hear it.

Not confusing Nigerians is not the solution to the issue.
In less than a week, elections will be held, and Nigerians will cast their votes for the All Progressives Congress, APC, or any other candidate they so choose.

The negative energy used against a well-intentioned currency shift will not sway our people, who desire growth, decent governance, law, and order.

Finally, it goes without saying that Asiwaju Bola Tinubu is the President’s preferred successor.

Although Tinubu has objected to the timing and speed of the Naira exchange timeline, this does not imply that he is opposed to Nigeria’s transition to a cashless society. Naturally, Tinubu is in favor of a cashless society since he is a futurist.

What needs to be made abundantly apparent to skeptics, investors, and untruth-tellers is that the naira swap was in no way “designed” to retain the President in office after May 29. Nothing is more false than it is.

The transfer of power to the president’s chosen successor is something he looks forward to. The Constitution mandates that this occur on May 29, 2023.

The days of unelected Nigerian leaders and those who illegally prolong their terms of office are over.

Garba Shehu
Senior Special Assistant to the President
(Media & Publicity)
February 17, 2023.