Prominent writer, Wole Soyinka has added her voice to discussions on the lingering effects of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) Naira overhaul policy accusing CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele of transforming Nigeria into a depression.
The naira overhaul, embodied in the scarcity of naira banknotes, has almost brought Nigeria to its knees in the face of its devastating effects on businesses and the survival of Nigerians.
However, the Supreme Court criticized the policy and legalized the old naira bills – N200, N500, and N1000 – until the last day of the year.
Speaking on Channels Television Roadmap 2023 aired on Monday, the intellectual described the policy as a clear crime against humanity.
Soyinka lamented the incalculable hardships inflicted on the people of Nigeria, even beyond the electoral violence that poorly executed policy aimed to reduce. He also blamed President Muhammadu Buhari for allowing politics to happen to the detriment of the Nigerian people.
“Emefiele has committed a crime against humanity, over and beyond even any electoral foul play. He struck at the heart of the subsisting survival principles, minimal needs and entitlements of the ordinary people in the street”, Soyinka said.
“He and his boss, Buhari, because ultimately responsibility rests with him Buhari to have allowed this to happen. But Emefiele is the expert. He’s the one who gives the advice, he’s the one who executes the policies.
“Don’t bully me. Don’t take my voice away. Don’t take my economic potential away, my economical entitlements. Don’t throw me on the mercy of sadists like Emefiele”, he added.
