By Onozure Dania 

LAGOS – AHEAD of the 2023 general elections, a Civil Society Organisation, Save Nigeria Project, SNP, yesterday, threw its weight behind the presidential ambition of governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele saying Nigeria deserves a president that will consolidate and expand the vision of landmark legacy of President Muhammadu Buhari.

The group endorsed Emefiele at a press conference held at Ikeja, with the theme ‘2023 and the state of the nation.’

They also passed a vote of confidence on President Muhammadu Buhari and the CBN’s economic agenda in Nigeria.

Speaking at the press conference in Lagos, the convener of Save Nigeria Project, Peter Abang, said the country should have a president that will consolidate and expand the vision of the landmark legacy of President Buhari.

Abang said: “It is in furtherance of the discharge of our duties as watchers of the civil space who have resolved to give our all for the prosperity of Nigeria and the benefit of all Nigerians that we have set out to make our contributions in assessing the state of the nation, calling for the way forward and working towards the Nigeria of our collective dreams.

“Nigeria has been on a steady march towards development. President Muhammadu Buhari since 2015 has ensured that the country has recorded more infrastructure growth than at any other time in our history. 

“Railways are now working in Nigeria: Lagos-Ibadan, Abuja-Kaduna, Itapke-Ajaokuta are all completed and running, while Ibadan-Kano, Lagos-Calabar, Port Harcourt-Maiduguri are at various stages of construction and completion.

“Several roads are also being constructed and reconstructed as well as bridges including the 2″ Niger Bridge, Loko Oweto Bridge, maintenance of the 3″ Mainland Bridge, the Ikom Bridge, Murtala Bridge, Tatabu Bridge, Isaac Boro Bridge and many others.

“Under President Muhammadu Buhari, the National Assembly has passed several laws which can improve the lives of Nigerians. Most recently, the Petroleum Industry Act, the Finance Act, the Companies and Allied Matters Act and the Electoral Act have been passed into law and signed by the President with enormous contributions from him. 

“Without these laws in place, life and systems in Nigeria would have been unimaginably unbearable. NNPC has been unbundled and its activities made more transparent and accountable.” 

“It is given this favourable assessment of our country’s leadership and the State of the Nation this first quarter of 2022 that we, as a civil society organization, pass a vote of confidence on President Buhari, his economic agenda and the monetary policies of the Central Bank of Nigeria ably led by Mr Godwin Emefiele.

“It is after a very rigorous search that we have come to the unequivocal and emphatic conclusion that only one man fits this description and we make bold to present to Mr Emefiele, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria for President in 2023. Mr Emefiele has shown unprecedented sagacity as Governor of the country’s central bank.

“His initiatives for small, medium and large scale enterprises have been unprecedented. In manufacturing, oil and gas, agriculture, trade and commerce, the signature of the CBN Governor has been very clear and precise. 

“The numerous interventions of the bank under high standard supervision is second to none. Rice farmers in our country have never had it so good in our entire history.”