PRESIDENT Bola Ahmed Tinubu has suspended the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, from office with immediate effect.
This follows an ongoing investigation of his office and the planned reforms in the financial sector of the economy, according to a statement from the Presidency..
Emefiele has been directed to immediately hand over the affairs of his office to the Deputy Governor (Operations Directorate), who will act as the Bank’s governor, pending the conclusion of the investigation and the reforms.
Meanwhile, Emefiele was reportedly arrested by the Department of State Security Service (DSS) immediately after his suspension.
Circumstances surrounding his arrest and detention remain sketchy at the time of this report, as it has neither been confirmed or denied by the security agency.
A press release by the Director, Information, Office of Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Willie Bassey, dated June 9, 2023 said the CBN governor was suspended to enable a smooth investigation of his office and the planned reforms in the economy’s financial sector.
Emefiele was appointed by former President Goodluck Jonathan in 2014 after his predecessor, Lamido Sanusi, was suspended from office by the then President a few months before the expiration of his tenure.
Until his appointment, Emefiele was the group managing director of Zenith Bank Plc.
During his tenure, the Naira experienced a significant decline, trading at over N750 per dollar in the parallel market and N469.50 at the official rate, the lowest it has ever traded on the Investors and Exporters (I&E) window.
The CBN under Mr Emefiele equally had troubles containing the country’s inflation rate, which stood at 22.2 per cent in May.
Last year, the DSS accused Emefiele of financing terrorism, among other allegations and sought a court order in December to arrest him on allegations of “financing terrorism, fraudulent activities, and economic crimes of national security dimension.”
The Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice J.T. Tsoho, however, refused to grant the application, ruling that such an application should have been accompanied with the presidential approval because of the grave implications for the Nigerian economy if the CBN governor was arrested and detained.
The suspended CBN governor also faced a barrage of criticism over his controversial intention to contest the last presidential election by seeking the nomination under the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), even though he tried to deny his direct involvement in partisan politics.
His alleged action attracted widespread condemnation, with many expressing worries over his impartiality and the autonomy of the CBN, with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) once contemplating removing sensitive materials for the general elections in the apex bank’s custody.
His actions came to a head late last year when the Bank introduced Naira redesign policy, which caused widespread chaos across the country.
All over the country, there was uncertainty and confusion as frustrated Nigerians staged protests in the midst of poor network and banking operations.
During the campaigns, Tinubu, who had emerged as candidate of the APC, claimed that the policies, such as the restriction on cash withdrawals to N20,000 per day and N100,000 per week, and withdrawal of the old N200, N5,000 and N1,000 from circulation as deliberately designed to hinder his chances of winning the presidential election.
During the chaos, there were calls for Emefiele’s arrest and prosecution.
Perhaps his battle for freedom has begun for Emefiele with his suspension.
