2023: Onovo Condemns Emefiele, Jonathan Over Alleged Presidential Aspirations

Head, Policy Positions, Movement For Fundamental Change (MFC),  Chief Martin Onovo, has said that the plan by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele, and the ‘rumoured’ move by former President Goodluck Jonathan to contest the 2023 Presidency under the All Progressives Congress (APC) reflect the national ethical and moral ambience which signposts the collapse of the nation’s constitutional values.
Onovo, who was the Presidential candidate of the National Conscience Party (NCP) in 2015 spoke with The Tide source on Saturday, stating that the actions of both men were a reflection of the incompetence and corruption of the President Muhammadu Buhari regime that tolerates deviations from normal democratic and moral norms.
Onovo, a political activist and engineer, who cut his political teeth under the late Chief Gani Fawehinmi, stated: “Both situations reflect our national ethical and moral ambience, which is the collapse of our constitutional value system.
“They also reflect the incompetence and corruption of the Buhari regime that tolerates all these deviations.”
Onovo, said that the CBN Act requires the Buhari regime to seek the consent of the Senate to remove Mr Emefiele from office based on what he considered a case of serious misconduct.
He stated: “The Buhari regime has as usual failed in his responsibility to protect the institution of the CBN from Mr Emefiele’s destructive games.
“This same Buhari regime prosecuted the innocent former Chief Justice of Nigeria and the former Senate President at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT), but has failed to take any actions against Mr Emefiele because the regime places its partisan interests above our national interests.
“This same Mr Emefiele has failed frighteningly in all his duties as CBN Governor. He was also a senior banking executive when many Nigerian banks were distressed, leading to the Sanusi reforms.”
Onovo stressed that the Constitution of Nigeria provides in Section 23 that, ‘The national ethics shall be Discipline, Integrity, Dignity of Labour, Social Justice, Religious Tolerance, Self-reliance and Patriotism’.
“The actions of Mr. Emefiele clearly amount to indiscipline and serious misconduct, which should be punished with removal from office and prosecution at the Code of Conduct Tribunal.
“The CBN Act provides for the independence of the CBN. By his membership of the ruling party, Mr. Emefiele is subject to the ruling party and has therefore compromised the independence of the CBN in very clear violation of the CBN Act.
“He is by that fact liable for serious misconduct. Immediate removal from office and prosecution at the Code of Conduct Tribunal will be corrective in this case.”
Onovo stressed that the Public Service Rules prohibits all public officers from participation in partisan politics and also from any other act unbecoming of a public officer.
“By his membership of the APC, Mr. Emefiele is participating in partisan politics and is engaged in an act unbecoming of a public officer. Removal, investigation, probe of his tenure and prosecution are appropriate,” he added.
On former President Jonathan, Onovo noted that he (Jonathan) had publicly dissociated himself from the purchase of the APC Intent and Nominations forms.
“Otherwise, we could have accused him of treachery against the Southern and Middle Belt Forum,” he stressed.