#NoDistractionsPlease: Emefiele speaks on calls to contest presidency

• Insists focus is building robust monetary policy, economy
Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, yesterday, said his focus is building a robust monetary policy and supporting growth of the economy.

The apex bank boss said this in series of tweets posted on his supposed Twitter handle.

Though the handle is unverified, The Guardian confirmed it is, indeed, operated by Emefiele.

In a veiled reference to the ongoing campaign by Friends of Godwin Emefiele, a political group urging him to give the presidency a shot, and other associations mounting pressure on him, Emefiele said he is more interested in helping President Muhammadu Buhari finish well.

He tweeted: “My focus at this time is a robust monetary policy and fighting inflation, which is now a global problem; building a strong financial system in an increasingly uncertain global economy, development finance and supporting farmers and manufacturers in our self-sufficiency and import substitution drive, raising N15 trillion for InfraCo infrastructure financing, building a world-class International Financial Centre in Lagos, as well as support the @MBuhari administration to finish strong.”

The governor’s message was driven home with the hashtag: #NoDistractionPlease.

There was, however, no reference to the pressure on him to join the presidential race.

The media has been awash with advertorials sponsored by groups urging Emefiele to contest in next year’s general elections. Activities of the groups peaked at the weekend during the All Progressives Congress (APC) national convention, where they campaigned openly for him.

Referring to the matter in Twitter posts, a Harvard economist, Oliver McPherson-Smith, had cast Emefiele in the mold of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

According to him, “It’s not very often that a sitting Central Bank governor is lauded by throngs of singing and dancing supporters, but backers of Emefiele might have just made history at this weekend’s APC national convention.

“The political theatre, whether organic or facilitated, is a quirky tribute to a technocrat whose celebrity status usually doesn’t stretch past the Davos city limits. In a crowded field of candidates for the APC’s presidential nominee, however, it’s unsurprisingly necessary to pull out all the stops to get ahead of the pack.”