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Buhari Aims to Destroy APC, Democracy with Naira Redesign, Says Ganduje
Kano State governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, has lashed out at the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari over its Naira redesign policy, predicting that it may hurt the chances of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the general election, and adversely affect democratic rule in the country.
Ganduje, an ally of the APC presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, made the claim on Wednesday, during a meeting with a group of former National Assembly members from the North West.
The governor of the commercial hub of northern Nigeria said the policy should have been introduced seven years ago, or after the election.
Ganduje said President Buhari, by implementing the policy close to an election, will destroy the party on which platform he became president for two consecutive terms.
“No doubt we know the importance of politicians. That’s why now, when you look at what’s happening, it can make you weep.
“Look at this person, who had contested several times without winning. No sooner than a merger took place, he won an election. After four years, he got re-elected. Now he is going after his tenure but there is nothing he is doing than to destroy the same party that helped him to power. How could anybody be like that?” Ganduje asked.
“Then it’s time for the election and you just bring this policy. For God, why is this coming at this time? What’s the importance of doing it now? Why not after the election? Why not some seven years back before now? Every politician will question this: what’s the importance of this policy? The CBN governor doesn’t understand these things. He is not a politician but just like that… He is a nobody,” he said.
Ganduje wondered how the president felt seeing banks being burnt by protesters in the southern part of the country due to the scarcity of the Naira notes.
“For God, just imagine these things. You’re a leader and you’re seeing a bank go up in flames. Could this be possible, if not because democracy has been bastardized? He doesn’t have an answer to this and this is not democracy,” he said.
Speaking further, Ganduje told the gathering that some governors went to court to protest the policy because it was not the right thing to do.
He also said it should have been revisited since international organisations like World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and some world leaders all called on the federal government to look at the possibility of revisiting the policy.
Ganduje said if the candidate of the ruling party is elected, he would discard the policy.
He also warned that banks in the state should collect old notes or risk having their certificate of operating in the state revoke.
President Donald Trump claimed on Monday that Americans want him to run for another term, a step banned by the US constitution but which he continues describing as possible.
“People are asking me to run,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office when asked about the possibility of a third term.
“I don’t know. I never looked into it. They do say there’s a way you can do it, but I don’t know about that, but I have not looked into it,” Trump said.
Trump was asked about the prospect of a race pitting him against former president Barack Obama, who served two terms.
“That would be a good one, I’d like that,” Trump said.
“I’m not joking” about the idea of seeking a third term, Trump said Sunday in an interview with NBC News.
The 78-year-old Republican served from 2017 to 2021 and began his second term in the White House on January 20.
The first US president, George Washington, established a tradition by not seeking a third term after completing his second one in 1797.
But this tradition was not formally added to the US constitution until after World War II, with the ratification of the 22nd amendment in 1951.
It says no one can be elected president more than two times.
Publisher of The Boss Newspaper and a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Dele Momodu, has appealed to President Bola Tinubu not to “kill democracy in Nigeria.”
The appeal, which was made while Momodu was fielding questions during a live television show on Channel TV’s Morning Brief on Monday, was an aftermath of President Tinubu’s suspension of Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Ngozi Odu, and the state House of Assembly for six months due to a political crisis in the state.
The journalist expressed his concern over Tinubu’s decision, which he described the move as “worse than dictatorship.”
He added that he was disappointed by the president’s actions, especially given Tinubu’s past fight for democracy.
Momodu stated, “I think it is very unfortunate. I know President Tinubu very, very, very well. Though I’ve not been in the same party [with him] and all that, we were together in exile, and he fought gallantly for this democracy,” he said.
“So a lot of us, co-comrades at that time, are actually very embarrassed that we have a pro-democracy leader in government, and yet what we are witnessing is worse than dictatorship.
“I’m pleading with President Bola Tinubu, ‘Please don’t kill democracy in Nigeria.’ Everybody who loves him will tell him this. I don’t; I’ve not asked him for anything or anything, but we love him for his contributions to the motivation in the back, which is what is going down the drain.”
He also warned that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) was trying to intimidate the opposition, urging Tinubu not to be misled by those around him, adding that he does not need to intimidate anybody.
“I’m saying it now openly to millions of Nigerians that people are deceiving President Tinubu, and he should not allow people to deceive you,” he said.
“He should just do his job. The only thing that can guarantee a second time is to do your job well. You do not need to intimidate anybody.”
President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima, on Sunday, joined others for prayers at the National Eid ground in Abuja, as Nigerian Muslims mark the Eid-El-Fitr celebrations together with millions of others around the world.
Deputy President of the Senate, Barau Jibrin, the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu and some ministers also observed the prayer at the same venue.
Eid-El-Fitr, meaning the festival of breaking the fast, is a time of gratitude, charity and communal harmony.
It began with special prayers known as Eid prayers held in Mosques and open spaces. Following the prayers, families share festive meals, exchange gifts and extend warm greetings.
Eid is a time to remember those less fortunate and to strengthen the bond of brotherhood and sisterhood. A key component of Eid is Zakat al Fitr, a mandatory charitable donation intended to ensure everyone irrespective of their financial situation can participate in the joy of the celebration.
This act of giving embodies the spirit of compassion and solidarity that Ramdan emphasizes. From the elaborate feast of South Asia to the festive clothing of Nigeria and the African continent and the warm gatherings of the Middle East, Eid celebrations vary across cultures, showcasing the rich diversity of the Muslim world.
However, the underlining message of unity, gratitude and compassion remains universal.
Saudi Arabia and some other Gulf Arab states are celebrating the Eid al-Fitr holiday from today, but other Middle Eastern countries will not do so until Monday.
“The Supreme Court has decided that tomorrow, Sunday, March 30, 2025, is the first day of Eid al-Fitr,” the Saudi Royal Court said in a statement carried by official media.
The timing of the holiday, which marks the end of the fasting month of Ramadan, is determined by the sighting of the crescent moon, in accordance with the Muslim lunar calendar.
The United Arab Emirates and Qatar also announced Sunday would be the first day of the holiday.
But neighbouring Oman and Jordan, as well as Shiite-majority Iran, said that Eid al-Fitr would not begin until Monday because the crescent moon had yet to be sighted. Egypt and other North African countries followed suit.
