Although Osinbajo has not openly declared his interest in the 2023 presidential race, different groups have been soliciting Nigerians’ support for the vice-president.
A former senator representing Kaduna Central, Shehu Sani has accused Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and the Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele of denying their interest in contesting for President in 2023.
Although Osinbajo has not openly declared his interest in the 2023 presidential race, different groups have been soliciting Nigerians’ support for the vice-president.
In January, a group called the Concerned Citizens of Nigeria launched an online petition, urging Nigerians to persuade him to contest the presidency in 2023.
Meanwhile, former Lagos governor and national leader of the All Progressives Congress, through whom Osinbajo got into office, has already declared his intention to run for President in 2023.
Some analysts have posited that Tinubu’s declaration has put Osinbajo in a difficult position as he is torn between pushing for his ambition and hurting the feelings of his political benefactor, Tinubu and his (Tinubu) supporters.
Similarly, SaharaReporters had reported how Emefiele’s supporters, mainly youths, spotted white T-Shirts with the inscription MEFFY 2023 at an occasion held in Lagos in February to draft him into the race.
Convener of the group, Wale Fapohunda, had told the gathering that since Emefiele’s appointment as CBN Governor, he had spent his energy building a resilient financial system that can serve the development needs of the economy, ignoring the glaring fact that Nigeria’s economy had dipped to its worst state ever during Emefiele’s tenure as CBN governor.
However, on Friday, Sani in a post on his Twitter handle, said though Osinbajo and Emefiele had been denying their interest in succeeding President Muhammadu Buhari in 2023, both of them have been campaigning.
“Two people that are denying and campaign is going on: VP and Emefiele,” he wrote.