LAMIDO'S SUSPENSION: Ex CBN Governor Replies To Allegations Of Financial Recklessness
The
embattled Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Sanusi Lamido
Sanusi, has finally broken the silence and replied to allegations of
financial recklessness levelled against him by the Presidency and the
Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria.
Sanusi
has issued a multi-page statement in the morning of March 16, 2014,
Sunday. He denied any wrongdoing, said he had already sent a detailed
response to the Presidency.
See the full press statement below:
---
I
am compelled to make this public statement to address the various
allegations levied against the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and cited
as the reasons for my suspension from office as the Governor of the CBN on the 19th of February 2014.
As a matter of record, the allegations were made in the following documents:
i.
Briefing Note of the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRCN)
dated 7th June 2013, Ref: PRES/188/T&I/89 to His Excellency,
President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan [the Briefing Note];
ii.
The Letter of Suspension dated 19th February 2014, which I received
from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation;
and
iii. The petition dated 9th February 2014 by Mr Erastus Akingbola.
However,
before I go into the above issues, let me reiterate for the records,
the achievements of the CBN during my tenure as the Governor:
The Record
Firstly,
let me state that I have been extremely fortunate to have had a solid
and supportive team led by the Deputy Governors and supported by the
Departmental Directors, as well as thousands of hardworking and
dedicated staff who must be given the credit for all that the CBN has
achieved. I would also like to acknowledge for the record, the
foundation laid by my predecessor, Professor Charles Chukwuma Soludo, in
a number of areas. The CBN Act, 2007, which he championed, established
the CBN as a truly autonomous entity of the Federation, and made it
possible for us to take the difficult decisions necessary for restoring
and maintaining macroeconomic stability. The FSS 2020 and PSV 2020
documents provided the principal strategic roadmaps that led to many of
the innovations in payment systems, non-interest banking, financial
inclusion, the Asset Management Corporation, IFRS, Risk-based
Supervision, and the like.
Indeed,
it will be impossible for me to review almost five years of
revolutionary change made possible by the work of thousands of employees
in the CBN in collaboration with other Regulators, Banks and Other
Financial Institutions and Government Ministries in this press
statement. However, I will mention a few of the key highlights.
On
monetary policy, the Bank has improved the institutional framework for
policy-making. A properly constituted Monetary Policy Committee (MPC)
with a clear mandate for maintaining stability has been established. The
MPC has been supported by improvements in research, data and
forecasting capacity, and we have also paid attention to clear
communication of our objectives to the market. As a result, headline
inflation has remained below 10 per cent since January 2013, from a peak
of 15.1 percent and 13.9 percent in 2008 and 2009 respectively. Core
inflation declined from 11.2 per cent in December 2009 to 7.9 percent in
December 2013, while food inflation maintained a downward trend from
15.5 percent in December 2009 to 9.3 percent in December 2013. In
addition to the conventional liquidity management products, the Bank
approved financial products to manage liquidity in non-interest
financial institutions. The CBN also promoted the formation of the
financial Markets Dealers Quotations Over–the-Counter (FQDM OTC) Plc as a
self-regulatory OTC operator.
In
the area of safeguarding the value of the local currency and
maintaining stability in the foreign exchange market for the overall
sustenance of macroeconomic stability and growth, the CBN over the
period has successfully maintained a stable exchange rate regime and a
robust external reserve position conducive to sustainable growth and
development.
On the
Banking System, I was appointed Governor in the middle of a global
financial crisis when the Nigerian banking system was on the verge of
collapse. The Bank moved swiftly to remove the managing directors and
executive directors of the banks where major corporate governance
failures were discovered, provided liquidity support, pioneered the
setting up of the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) to
purchase non-performing loans, recapitalize the banks and pilot a
process that led to mergers and acquisitions, as well as
recapitalization of all the weak and failing banks. As a result, all
financial soundness indicators – Capital Adequacy, Asset Quality,
Liquidity and Profitability ratios – were normalized. As a result of
the work by the Bank, not a single depositor or creditor lost money in
any Nigerian bank during or after the financial crisis.
In
addition to the quantitative measures, we broke up universal banks and
encouraged the setting up of specialized banks (including the first Non –
interest Bank in the Country’s history), pushed for the adoption of
IFRS and Basel 3, enhanced risk-based supervision, issued Competency
Guidelines for the staff in the banking industry, established a Consumer
Protection Department and developed a Financial Inclusion Strategy and
Roadmap, among others for the CBN.
The
Bank implemented policies aimed at reducing the excessive use of cash
in the system to ensure safety, improve efficiency and curb money
laundering. The transformation of NIBSS, the insistence on
interoperability of channels, encouragement of electronic banking, the
licensing of Mobile Money Operators, the Agent Banking and tiered-KYC
frameworks have all led to rapid growth in volume and value of non-cash
transaction and enhanced financial inclusion.
The
Bank has played its leadership role in ensuring industry compliance
with environmental sustainability and governance standards, including a
strong focus on women and the handicapped.
The
CBN in the last five years has taken a leading role in providing
long-term low-cost funding to priority sectors of the Nigerian economy
in a bid to help in bringing to reality the Transformation Agenda of the
government of your Excellency. We have provided these funds at
single-digit interest rates to micro, small and medium enterprises, as
well as to companies operating in the power, aviation, and agricultural
sectors of the economy, and also to large industrial enterprises with
potential for structural transformation.
The
Bank has invested in human capital, improved staff welfare and
attracted and retained specialized skills in the areas of Banking
Supervision, Information Technology, Shared Services and Risk
Management.
On
Financial Performance, the Bank has in the last five years kept a lid on
overheads and cost of currency management. As a result, the Bank has
continued to produce sterling results and contributed substantially to
the Federal Budget. In the five years, 2009 – 2013, the Bank contributed
N376 billion to the Federal Budget as Internally Generated Revenue
(IGR).Based on 2012 financials alone, we paid N80 billion to the
Ministry of Finance. On the basis of the 2013 results and at the request
of the Coordinating Minister of the Economy (CME), we paid N159
billion to the Ministry of Finance in February this year; the same month
the audited accounts of the CBN were approved by the Committee of
Governors (COG). Indeed, due to the precarious position of Government
finances, the CBN in February 2014, upon the request of the CME, gave
the Ministry a further ‘Advance IGR’ of N70 billion in anticipation of
2014 profits.
May I
add that, in 2008, the year before my appointment, the CBN contributed
N8 billion to the Federation Account. Although the Bank is not a
profit-centre, in the first four years of my term, the Bank alone
contributed 75 percent of the total IGR paid by MDAs leading to
commendation by the House Committee on Finance at several Public
Hearings.
Recognitions
As
a result of these achievements of my colleagues and staff, we received
numerous recognitions consistently throughout my tenure from
highly-regarded publications. These awards are based on a competitive
process where analysts and economists rank Central Bank Governors across
regions and the globe.
In
2010, The Banker Magazine, a publication of Financial Times in London,
named me Best Central Bank Governor in the World and Best in Africa. At
the Annual World Bank/IMF Meetings, Emerging Markets, a publication of
Euromoney Institutional Investor named me Best Central Bank Governor in
Sub-Saharan Africa for 2009, 2010 and 2012. The African Banker Magazine
named me Best Central Bank Governor in Africa, 2012. This is in addition
to being named Forbes Africa Person of the year 2011 and listed by TIME
as one of the 100 most influential people in the world, 2011.
I
have always regarded these honours not as personal accolades, but as a
tribute to our nation and the committed and resourceful women and men of
CBN.
Response to the allegations in relation to my suspension
On
Wednesday 10th March 2014, I submitted a Memorandum to His Excellency,
Mr President, with supporting documentation, effectively addressing all
the allegations contained in the FRCN Briefing Note, the Letter of
Suspension and the Akingbola Petition.
Having
submitted my response to the President, I am further compelled,
following the recent press briefing and comments by the Senior Special
Adviser to the President on Media, as well as numerous other references
to the allegations in both local, international and online media, to put
to the public my responses, in the interest of transparency,
accountability and my responsibility to the Nigerian people. Let me also
state that I saw the FRCN “Briefing Note” for the first time when it
was attached to the suspension letter. At no time was this report sent
to the CBN either by the President or the FRCN for comments or
explanations. As for the Akingbola petition, it is a rehash of baseless
allegations he has been making since 2010 which apparently he must have
been asked to reproduce on February 9, ten days before the suspension.
It is indeed strange that the CBN Governor can be suspended based on
allegations written by a man who ran his bank into the ground and
against whom judgement has been obtained in a London court, and who
furthermore is facing criminal prosecution at home for offences
including criminal Theft.
A
careful examination of the allegations contained in the FRCN Briefing
Note to Mr President, will show that each of the allegations could
easily have been resolved by a simple request for clarification or more
careful review. There is no doubt that if the CBN had received the
Briefing Note, which was prepared in June 2013, all the misconceptions,
misrepresentations and erroneous inferences contained therein would have
been cleared.
I am
publishing these responses to enable the general public see that each
and every allegation levelled against the CBN under my leadership is
false and unfounded, and that many of the allegations were malicious and
fabricated, having been designed to mislead the President into
believing that the Management of the Central Bank was guilty of
misconduct and recklessness.
Having
provided detailed explanations, backed by verifiable documents, it is
my sincere wish that His Excellency, Mr President, in line with his
adherence to fairness and justice, will apply the same rationale and
rigour to other agencies of the Federal Government that have had serious
allegations and queries levied against them, and prevail upon them to
provide responses and explanations with the same level of clarity and
transparency.
In
closing, I would like to place on record the dogged professionalism and
patriotism of the staff of the CBN. They have, over the years, conducted
themselves very creditably, and discharged their duties with the
highest integrity.
Memorandum Responding to THE FRCN ALLEGATIONS
1. Corporate Governance
Briefing
Note Allegation 1:that there is weak corporate governance at the CBN on
account of the fact that the office of the Governor is fused with that
of the Chairman of CBN’s Board of Directors.
Response:
i.
This allegation ignores the fact that global best practice is that the
Governor of the central bank is the Chairman of the Board of Directors
of the central bank. See Annexure A, which shows the composition of the
Board of Directors of central banks in over 55 different countries.
2. Alleged Fraudulent Activities
Payments to NSPMP
Briefing
Note Allegation 2:that the CBN’s breakdown of “Currency Issue Expenses”
for 2011 and 2012 indicated that it paid the Nigerian Security Printing
and Minting Plc(NSPMP) N38.233 Billion in 2011 for printing of
banknotes, whereas the entire turnover of NSPMP was N 29.370 Billion.
Response:
i. The expense item of N38.233 Billion to NSPMP was made up as follows:
a. N28.738Billion payment to NSPMP in 2011;
b. N6.587Billion accrued liability in 2011 but paid in 2012 when deliveries were received; and
c. N2.829Billion audit adjustment journal entry into the account at the end of 2011 in respect of prepayments to NSPMP.
ii.
See Annexure Bfor the evidence of payment to the NSPMP. Evidently, the
difference between the numbers in the financial statements of CBN and
NSPMP is a simple reflection of timing differences between recognition
of expenses by the CBN and income recognition by the NSPMP, with both
entities applying conservative accounting policies.
3. Charter Fees
Briefing
Note Allegation 3: That the CBN made fictitious payments to (a) Emirate
Airlines: N0.511 Billion which allegedly does not fly local charter in
Nigeria; (b) Wing Airline: N0.425 Billion which allegedly is not
registered with the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA); and (c)
Associated Airline: N1.025 Billion which allegedly did not have a
turnover of up to a billion naira in 2011.
Response:
i.
The CBNn either engaged, paid nor claimed to have paid Emirates
Airlines. Rather, the CBN engaged and entered into an Air Charter
Services Agreement with Emirate Touch Aviation Services Limited, which
is a local Nigerian charter service company. A simple enquiry by FRCN
would have clarified and avoided this misrepresentation.
ii.
With respect to Wings Aviation Limited, the CBN contracted Wings
Aviation Limited, which changed its name to Jedidiah Air Limited on
21August 2009 but only notified the CBN of the change on 28 February
2012.Please, see Annexure C for the letter from Jedidiah Air Limited
notifying the CBN of the change of name. Here also, a simple enquiry by
FRCN would have made this clear.
iii.
With respect to Associated Air Limited, the CBN did in fact pay a total
of N1.025 Billion to Associated Airline Limited. See Annexure D for the
schedule of payments made to Associated Airline Limited. It is worth
stating that the CBN is not responsible for how the company reports its
turnover.
4. Deposit for Shares in Bank of Industry (BoI)
Briefing
Note Allegation 4: that the CBN is yet to receive the share certificate
for investments made in the Bank of Industry (BoI) since September 2007
and that the leadership of the CBN was not worried about the delay.
Response:
i.
On 20 August 2009, shortly after I assumed office, I directed that a
reconciliation exercise be carried out by the CBN on all its investments
in parastatals and companies. Thereafter, the CBN wrote various letters
to the Bank of Industry requesting for its share certificates. See
Annexure E for the letters from the CBN requesting for the certificate.
ii.
On 20 September 2009, the BoI wrote to the CBN explaining that the
delay in the issuance of the share certificates was as a result of the
BoI seeking a concession on the payment of stamp duty and other
statutory fees from the Corporate Affairs Commission and the Federal
Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) with respect to the investment by the CBN
and the FMF. See Annexure F for the letter from the BoI. Also find
attached the letter dated 21 February 2013 forwarding the Share
Certificate as Annexure G as well as the certificate for the Debenture
as Annexure H.
iii.
It is evident that as at the time the FRCN Briefing Note was written,
the share certificate and debenture certificate were already in the
possession of the CBN. A simple check by the FRCN would have answered
the query.
5. Currency Issue Expenses
Briefing
Note Allegation 5: that the expenses made by the CBN on account of
currency issues and sundry currency charges for the years 2011 and 2012
were identical and therefore difficult to understand.
Response:
i.
It is incorrect to say that the expenses in 2011 and 2012 were
identical. The sundry currency charges amounted to N1.68 Billion in 2011
and N1.87 Billion in 2012. This expense related to amounts paid to
Travelex under an agreement to import foreign exchange for licensed
BDCs. On the other hand, Currency Issue Expenses totalled N1.15 Billion
in 2011 and N1.28 Billion in 2012, relating to expenses borne by the
different branches and currency centres of the CBN in the movement and
handling of cash.
6. Facilities Management
Briefing
Note Allegation 6: that the CBN’s leadership uses this head of expense
(Facilities Management) to capture what ordinarily should have been
accounted for as their benefits-in-kind for tax purposes. It also
alleges that this head of expense is used for ‘fraudulent activities’
based on the inclusion of items such as “Profit from sale of Diesel”.
Response:
i.
The CBN outsources the management and maintenance of its landed
properties across the 36 States of the Federation and the FCT. This
involves three service areas: engineering services, building services
and environmental services. These are operational costs relating
principally to head offices, branches, currency centres and training
institutes.
ii. On
the specific allegation of ‘fraudulent activities’, based on profits
from the sale of diesel, it should be noted that the CBN’s Facilities
Management Agreements clearly include the supply of diesel for the
operation of generators to power CBN offices in 51 locations across the
36 States and the FCT. The Diesel is paid for at pump price, while
overhead and profit at 10% is paid to the service providers. This
overhead and profit is presumably what the FRCN erroneously regarded as
“profits from the sale of diesel”. These profits do not go to the CBN
but to the service providers, which is why they are an “expense item”.
The CBN does not operate in any sector of the petroleum industry.
7. Fixed Assets Clearing Account
Briefing
Note Allegation 7: that the expenses under the Fixed Assets Clearing
Account comprise properties acquired by the CBN without any expectation
to derive future economic benefits and are written off by the CBN on a
yearly basis.
Response:
i.
Fixed Assets Clearing Account is used by the CBN to record the
procurement of fixed assets, physical items and projects-related
expenditure for the CBN, using the IT application Oracle ERP. However,
some items, which do not qualify as fixed assets under the
capitalisation policy of the CBN, are sometimes posted into this
account.
ii. The
transactions are periodically reviewed for the purpose of capitalizing
those which qualify under the Capitalization Policy and posting such to
the respective Fixed Asset Account and Fixed Asset Register with tag
numbers. All other assets which do not qualify are expensed through
income and expenditure accounts at the end of the year.
8. Operation of Foreign Bank Accounts
Briefing
Note Allegation 8: that foreign bank accounts that were closed down
were still operational in the General Ledger for over six months after
the accounts had been confirmed closed by the offshore banks.
Response:
i.
The balances on these accounts simply reflected the fact that the
process of the transfer of gains and losses on them had not been
concluded, hence their existence in the General Ledger. The process of
closing the accounts has since been concluded and the journals
evidencing closure are available in the CBN.
9. Unreconciled Real Time Gross Settlement Clearing Account
Briefing
Note Allegation 9:that the Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) Account
had longstanding unreconciled items which could not be substantiated.
Response:
i.
These items resulted from epileptic operations of the RTGS system due
to frequent system downtime, which in turn resulted in failure to
seamlessly effect funds transfer. These items have since been reconciled
and we have put in place an upgraded and more robust RTGS system, which
would minimise reoccurrence.
10. Missing Stockpiles of Foreign Currency
Briefing
Note Allegation 10: that the external audit revealed debit/credit
balances of sundry foreign currencies without the physical stock of
foreign currencies at the CBN Head Office.
Response:
i.
Generally, losses or gains may arise out of the account balances, which
in turn, may be occasioned by exchange rate differentials. In either
event, once crystallized, the net position is then posted to the Foreign
Assets Revaluation Account. As such, as at 20 February 2014, there was
no physical stock of currency missing at the CBN.
11. Alleged Wastefulness
Briefing Note Allegation 11: that the CBN has been wasteful in its expenditure incurred in the course of 2012.
Response:
i.
This allegation is clearly at variance with the reality of the
financial performance of the CBN under my leadership. For example, in
the year 2008, just before I took over office at the CBN, the
contribution of the CBN to the Federation Account was N8Billion. Based
on the 2012 annual accounts, our contribution rose ten fold to
N80Billion,while in 2013, our contribution, based on the audited
accounts, was N159Billion.
ii.
It is noteworthy that in the 5 years of my tenure as CBN Governor (2009
– 2013), the CBN has contributed N376Billion to the Federal Budget as
IGR (Internally-Generated Revenue). Indeed in 2012, the House of
Representatives Committee on Finance publicly commended the CBN for
being the highest contributor of revenues to the FGN among MDAs –
accounting for 75% of the total IGR contributed by MDAs between 2009 and
2012. The CBN has been able to achieve this through prudent management
of costs, including currency expenses and overheads. For example, we
brought down currency expenses from N50.8 Billion in 2009 to N29.08
Billion in 2012.
iii.
It is worthy noting that the Ministry of Finance has already received
its IGR from the CBN in full, based on our 2013 accounts and the
Ministry even requested and received an advance of N70Billion in
anticipation of surplus that is yet to be earned for 2014. With this
level of prudent financial performance, it is puzzling to imagine the
basis for the levied allegation of “Wastefulness”. It must be
underscored that central banks all over the world are not considered as
profit centres. The primary task of the CBN is the attainment of price
stability rather than revenue generation. However, the CBN under my
leadership has strived to deliver on its key mandate, while also
maximising revenues for government.
12. Promotional Activities
Briefing Note Allegation 12:that the sums expended on promotional efforts of the CBN in 2012 were too high.
Response:
i.
The allegations do not suggest that proper procedure was not complied
with in making the referenced expenditure. The Board of the CBN approved
all the promotional expenses.
ii.
In the year under review, 2012, the CBN initiated several reforms and
policies in the execution of its statutory mandate of promoting a sound
financial system in Nigeria. Some of these policies included:
iii. the introduction of the Cashless Lagos Initiative and mobile banking;
iv.
the Power and Aviation Intervention Fund (PAIF) campaign, for which the
FG took credit. The PAIF campaign helped to stimulate growth in the
power sector and raise investor confidence generally;
v. the National Microfinance Development Strategy; and
vi.
the Nigerian Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural
Lending (NIRSAL) and the Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme (CACS),
which supported the FG’s renewed focus on the development of agriculture
as a major income earner for the country.
vii.
Essentially, what are characterized as ‘promotional’ were actually
necessary education, enlightenment and awareness campaigns and
conferences on initiatives which were, and remain, essential to economic
growth, expansion of financial inclusion and the achievement of the
policy objectives of the CBN and the FG.
13. Training &Travel Expenses
Briefing Note Allegation 3: that CBN’s expenses in relation to training and travel went up from N7.65 Billion to N9.24 Billion.
Response:
i.
In 2012, the Board of the CBN took the strategic decision to invest in
the development and training of CBN staff across all departments. We
trained our staff in the most prudent manner possible and this led to
the outstanding achievements recorded by the CBN during my tenure. We
had to send CBN staff to international finance and regulatory
institutions for training; and overseas training comes at a steep cost.
ii.
Furthermore, in 2012, to match the increased need for bank supervision,
CBN staff strength was increased. This further necessitated orientation
and other training programmes to bring the new entrants up to speed
with the CBN policies and practices.
14. Expenses on ATM Offsite Policy Change
Briefing Note Allegation 14: that expenses on the ATM offsite policy change came to N1.045 Billion.
Response:
i.
Prior to my appointment as the CBN Governor, the CBN had initiated a
policy of increasing accessibility to financial services through the use
of ATMs. This was geared towards ensuring financial inclusion for all
Nigerians. To achieve this, the CBN licensed independent ATM deployers
(IADs).
ii. However,
it soon became apparent that these IADs had neither the capital nor the
capacity to roll out ATMs and manage them at a rate consistent with our
cashless Nigeria ambitions, and that a roll-out on the scale envisaged
would require allowing banks to deploy ATMs outside their branches. As a
result of this change in policy, the IADs incurred losses due to prior
investments made based on the previous policy.
iii.
It was therefore in the interest of equity and fairness that the CBN
agreed to negotiate some compensation payable to the IADs after
verification of claims of the IADs by the CBN. The verification process
resulted in the CBN paying only about 40% of the original claims of the
IADs.
iv. The
implementation of the policy of increasing accessibility to financial
services has been very successful with immense benefits to the country.
It has led to an increase in ATM penetration and efficiency of the
payment system along with all other benefits associated with this
channel.
15. Expenses on Non-Interest Banking
Briefing
Note Allegation 15: that the expenses on Non-Interest Banking went up
from N0.977 Billion in 2011 to N1.359 Billion in 2012 and speculation
was made as to whether this had any relationship with the CBN’s
investment in the International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation
(IILMC).
Response:
i.
For the record, this expense item is not connected with the investment
of the CBN in the IILMC. As such, there is no basis to make such an
assumption. Rather, the item relates partially to the CBN’s specialised
and non-interest banking policies and includes other expenses of the
Financial Policy and Regulation Department such as (a) consolidated
supervision; and (b) Consultancy fees for the adoption of IFRS &
Basel II/III.
16. Expenses on Private Guards and Policemen
Briefing
Note Allegation 16: that the CBN’s expenses on Private Guards and Lunch
for Policemen went up from N0.919 Billion in 2011 to N1.257Billion in
2012.
Response:
i.
In 2007 (before my tenure), the CBN adopted a policy to outsource
non-core functions, including security services. This decision enabled
the Bank to focus on its statutory mandate and to reduce its overheads.
Accordingly, the CBN retained the services of about thirteen (13)
private security companies to provide access control and security check
services. In 2012, the CBN budgeted N600 Million for security services
but spent N582.2 Million on private guards. See AnnexureI (A-B) for the
breakdown of the costs incurred in this regard.
ii.
To complement the efforts of private guards, the CBN also requested the
services of security agencies, in light of the increased security
challenges, especially the activities of the Boko Haram terrorist group.
These security personnel were engaged on a daily basis; and were
attached to (x) senior CBN officials; (y) special assignments such as
security coverage for currency movements; (z) static guard duties at the
bank’s premises nationwide, and other sundry engagements. About 2,406
Policemen are currently deployed on a daily basis to various branches
and other locations of the CBN. These security personnel were paid a
daily lunch and transport allowances totalling N675.02 Million in the
year under review.
17. Project Eagles
The
Briefing Note Allegation 17: that the expenses of the CBN on Project
Eagles went up from N63 Million in 2011 to N606 Million in 2012.
Response:
i.
Under Project Eagles, the CBN caters for all expenses incurred in the
course of an internal restructuring of the CBN on the understanding that
central banking, by global standards and best practice measures, is an
ever-evolving enterprise, with constantly changing requirements and
frameworks that require adaptation.
ii.
In 2012, the expenses on Project Eagles included the following internal
restructuring initiatives: Strategy Execution Framework Project,
Transformation of the Procurement and Support Services Department,
Transformation of the Finance Department and the NIPOST PPP Project in
collaboration with the Ministry of Communication for the purpose of
using NIPOST locations as outlets for our Financial Inclusion Strategy.
iii.
Project Eagles was carefully designed, well budgeted for and was
approved by the Board. The objectives are being achieved in light of the
improved efficiency of the CBN.
18. Newspapers, Books &Periodicals
Briefing
Note Allegation 18: that the expenses of the CBN on newspapers, books
and periodicals (excluding CBN’s publications) went up from
N1.670Billion in 2011 to N1.678Billion in 2012.
Response:
i.
The CBN’s peculiar status as a regulator underscores the need for its
staff to be informed as to every development that has a bearing, however
tangential, on the object and functions of the CBN in the economy. The
expenses incurred were made in subscriptions for, and acquiring, local
and foreign journals, magazines and periodicals for the CBN. These
educational and information material are directly useful for the
operations of the CBN. The CBN increased the number of employees
entitled to access to newspapers, Books and periodicals.
19. Legal &Professional Fees
Briefing Note Allegation 19: that the CBN paid excessive legal and professional fees of N20.202 Billion in 2011.
Response:
i.
The CBN, like any other public entity, is not immune from liabilities
that arise from judgments and orders of the Nigerian courts. The
referenced N20.202Billion spent under this head covered the CBN’s
judgment debt liabilities in the year under review.
ii.
Of particular reference is the judgment of the Supreme Court in the
case of Amao v the Central Bank of Nigeria, [SC 168/2007]delivered on 21
May, 2010, wherein the apex Court directed that the CBN pay employees
of the Bank who had retired prior to 2000, pension under the harmonised
structure introduced by the FG. Note that the negotiated litigation
liability that arose from the above-specified matter was approximately
N19.8Billion. See Annexure J for the judgment of the Supreme Court in
question.
20. Reduced Expenses on Ethics &Anti-Corruption
Briefing
Note Allegation 20: that the CBN, under my watch, reduced its
expenditure on Ethics and Anti-corruption and this reduction is
purportedly an instance of ‘financial recklessness and wastefulness’.
Response:
i.
In response to the need to improve ethical and best practice standards
in its operations to bring it at par with international standards and
the code of conduct requirements, the CBN expended N34Million in 2011 to
develop the Code of Business Ethics and Compliance (COBEC) as well as
the Code of Conduct for staff, the implementation of which spilled over
into 2012. This explains why the expenditure dropped from N34 Million to
N18 Million.
21. Auditor’s Fees
Briefing
Note Allegation 21: that the CBN paid an additional N140 Million over
and above the agreed fees for the external auditors.
Response:
i.
The 2012 financial statements of the CBN stated that the amount paid to
the two firms of external auditors for the 2012 financial year was
N200Million. The subsequent graduating revision of the fee was to the
sum of N230Million effective from 2013.
ii.
The N140Million purportedly paid to the external auditors as
“additional fees”, was paid as reimbursement of the expenses incurred by
these firms in the execution of their mandate as external auditors of
the Bank for previous audit exercises. See Annexure K for evidence of
payments made to the auditors. Payment of reimbursables is a standard
contractual practice when dealing with professional service firms.
22. Alleged Abuse of Due Process
The MoU for the Banking Sector Resolution Cost Sinking Fund
Briefing
Note Allegation 22: that the CBN issued treasury bills using the money
in the Banking Resolution Costs Sinking fund (Sinking Fund) without the
constitution and approval of the Board of Trustees as required under the
MOU signed by the CBN and all the deposit money banks operating in
Nigeria.
Response:
i.
The contributors to the Sinking Fund are the CBN and all deposit money
banks in the country. All the parties agreed at Bankers Committee that
the monies contributed should be invested in treasury bills for safety.
The CBN, as custodian, simply implemented that agreement. The board of
trustees for Sinking Fund has not been constituted as the legal
framework for the Sinking Fund i.e. the Banking Sector Resolution Cost
Fund Bill is still pending before the National Assembly.
ii. It should be noted that AMCON redeemed its due bonds on 27 December, 2013 from this account.
23. Write off of N3.85 Billion Loan
Briefing
Note Allegation 23: that the leadership of the CBN wrote-off loans
supposedly made to staff members to the tune of N3.85 Billion in 2012.
Response:
i.
The write-off above was not made in favour of CBN staff. Rather the
Board of the CBN approved the write-off of the loan as forbearance to
Heritage Bank on 17 December, 2010 as part of the process of
facilitating its resumption of business as a regional bank. See Annexure
L for the board approval given on 17 December 2010.
24. Overdrawn Accounts by Ministries, Departments & Parastatals
Briefing
Note Allegation 24: that the deposit accounts of parastatals have debit
and overdrawn positions and that this is contrary to government policy.
Response:
i.
MDAs generally maintain bank accounts with the CBN. Overdrawing of
banks accounts is an incidence of banker–customer relationship. However,
the CBN experienced some technical problems prior to mid-2012, which
affected about 6 of the over 1000 bank accounts maintained by MDAs at
the CBN, but the error has been rectified since the middle of 2012.
There were some insignificant over drawings on about six (6) of the
accounts and the attention of the Office of the Accountant-General of
the Federation has been drawn to the matter. See Annexure M for the
letter to the Accountant-General and the Accountant-General’s response
of January 29th, 2014.
25. Investment in International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation (IILMC)
Briefing
Note Allegation 25: that the investment in the IILMC was not brought to
the attention of His Excellency, Mr President, and was not within the
exception in Section 31 of the CBN Act.
Response:
i.
Nigeria, through the CBN, is signatory to the establishment agreement
of the IILMC. Before proceeding with the investment, I requested for and
obtained the written approval of His Excellency, Mr President, via a
letter dated 8 December, 2010. His Excellency, Mr President would recall
that he approved this request on 22.12.10. See Annexure N.
ii.
The investment in question is permitted by Section 24 of the CBN Act,
in pursuance of which it was made as investment of Reserves by the
Reserve Management Department of the CBN. If at any point, the CBN
wishes to divest from the IILMC, one or more of the member central banks
will purchase this investment.
iii.
It is worthy of note that in the letter seeking Mr President’s approval
for the investment, it was stated explicitly that all the member
central banks were treating their investment as part of their external
reserves.
iv. It was
also alleged that, till the date of the issuance of the Briefing Note
(7th June, 2013), the CBN had not received its share certificate for the
apex Bank’s investment in the IILMC. However, the said share
certificate, dated 6th April, 2013, has indeed been received and is
hereby annexed as Annexure O.
26. Non-adoption of IFRS Standards
Briefing
Note Allegation 26: that the CBN did not comply with the IFRS
accounting standards in preparing its 2012 financial statements.
Response:
i.
It has been and remains a cardinal policy of the CBN to comply with
statutory requirements and policy guidelines of regulators. In
recognition of the peculiar nature of the CBN as a central bank and its
peculiar responsibilities, its migration to the IFRS would require
extended time to comply with the Act.
ii.
In view of this reality, I wrote the FRCN via a letter dated
14thFebruary 2013, requesting for a temporary exemption to allow the CBN
prepare the 2012 financial statements based on the existing financial
reporting framework.
iii.
The FRCN waived the requirement for the CBN to comply with the IFRS
standards in preparing its 2012 financial statements by its letter of
exemption dated 26 February 2013. See Annexure P for the FRCN’s letter.
iv.
In January 2010, the published Report of the Committee on the Roadmap
for the adoption of IFRS in Nigeria (the Roadmap), allowed Public
Interest Entities, in the nature of CBN, to delay the adoption of the
IFRS financial statements until 31 December 2013. See Annexure Q for the
Roadmap. It is probably for the same reason the FRCN itself did not
prepare its audited financial statements in accordance with IFRS for the
year ended 2012.
v.
It is worth noting that very few Central Banks in the world are able to
comply with IFRS due to a number of factors peculiar to the nature of
central banking, especially in the following areas:
a. Accounting for Change in the value of Gold reserves.
b. Management of government foreign exchange reserves and exchange rate fluctuations.
c.
Disclosure challenges around monetary policy interventions and its
activities as lender of last resort to financial institutions, and
guarantor to government borrowing.
d. Valuation of assets held in foreign currencies.
e. Challenges around weekly Treasury Bill sales.
f. Management of years of deficit after surplus has been transferred to the government in the year of surplus.
g. Funding government deficit financing as enshrined in section 38 of the CBN Act 2007.
27. Non-Compliance with ITF Act
Briefing
Note Allegation 27: that the CBN failed to comply with the ITF Act by
not paying the mandatory one per centum of the amount of its annual
payroll to the ITF.
Response:
i.
The CBN, at the time, contested in court its obligation to pay one per
centum of its payroll to the ITF on the ground that the CBN is not
engaged in commerce or industry, which under the ITF Act is the basis
for an employer to make payments under the ITF Act.
ii.
However, upon further considerations, the matter was amicably settled
by the CBN and ITF. The CBN has duly complied with the ITF Act and has
paid all levies up to the 2012 financial year. See Annexure R, which
bears this out.
28. AUDITING
Briefing
Note Allegation 28: that the joint auditors of the CBN’s financial
statement did not certify that the accounts give a true and fair view of
the financial position of the CBN as at 31 December 2012.
Response:
i.
Without any iota of evidential proof, and in a most sweeping statement,
the FRCN Briefing Note alleged that the joint auditors’ opinion was a
technical qualification; that the accounts should not be relied upon for
decision-making.
ii. To set the records straight, auditors do not certify accounts but only express opinions on the financial statements.
iii.
The joint auditors stated that the CBN’s 2012 financial statements were
properly prepared and accorded with accounting policies and the
provisions of the CBN Act 2007 and other applicable regulations.
iv.
The opinion, as expressed by our auditors, is consistent with what
obtains in respect of central banks in a number of other jurisdictions.
We enclose by way of example, a sample of opinions relating to the
central banks of the United States of America, South Africa and Ghana.
See Annexure S. The allegation made by the FRCN in relation to this
aspect of the auditors’ report is troubling when viewed in this light.
29. Non-consolidation of accounts with Subsidiaries
Briefing Note Allegation 29: that the CBN did not consolidate its account with those of its subsidiaries.
Response:
i.
The CBN does not have subsidiaries and the assumption that AMCON is a
subsidiary of the CBN is wrong. The shares in AMCON are held by the
Federal Government as borne out by Section 2 of the AMCON Act.
Furthermore, the accounting reporting period of the CBN is statutory and
does not coincide with that of AMCON.
30. Abridgement of Financial Statements
Briefing
Note Allegation 30: that the financial statement was highly abridged,
with poor disclosures of transactions and events of a financial nature.
Response:
ii.
The financial statement cannot by any stretch of the imagination be
described as “highly abridged”. Rather, all transactions in the
financial statement were substantiated and were prepared in line with
the CBN’s framework with all relevant notes, schedules and disclosures
copiously made for clarity.
31. Non- Challance and AMCON’s Operations
Briefing
Note Allegation 31: that AMCON made a loss (after taxation) of N
2,439,701,422,000 (over N 2.4 Trillion) and also had a negative total
equity ofN2,345,620,364,000 (over N 2.3 Trillion) at the end of 2011.
The FRCN alleges that I should have brought it to the attention of His
Excellency, Mr President, that a large portion of the AMCON bonds would
be due for redemption by 31 December 2013 and that the inability of the
Federal Government to fulfil the guarantee may affect the credit rating
of Nigeria negatively. In other words, the CBN breached its statutory
objects under Section 2(e) of the CBN Act by not drawing His
Excellency’s attention to the matter.
Response:
i.
A major achievement of the Central Bank was that the AMCON bonds in
question that matured at the end of 2013 were successfully redeemed
without any budgetary appropriation or call on the Federal Government to
guarantee the repayment as referenced above.
ii.
It must be emphasized that AMCON bonds are not instruments issued by
the CBN. On that score, it would be most inappropriate and against every
known principle of standard accounting convention for the CBN to
incorporate full disclosures on the maturity profile of AMCON’s bonds in
its audited financial statements (balance sheet and notes).
iii.
Rather, in accordance with international best practice, the CBN is only
required to disclose in its accounts, the portion of the bonds held by
it (the CBN). To this extent, the CBN made appropriate disclosures in
the financial statements on the bonds it held as at 31 December 2012.
See Annexure T – which is note 6 to the CBN’s 2012 financial statements
showing the amount CBN has invested in AMCON bonds.
32. Non-approval of 2012 financial statement by CBN Board
Briefing
Note Allegation 32: that the date of the Board’s approval of the
financial statements was not indicated or disclosed and accordingly, the
response provided to the President’s request for clarifications
indicated that the management letter on the financial statements was yet
to be discussed by the Board Audit and Risk Management Committee.
Response:
i.
The financial statements were presented to the board and approved on 26
February 2013. The date of approval was stated clearly on the balance
sheet page behind the signature of each of the directors. (See Annexure U
for a board approval dated 26 February 2013 approving financial
statements).Issues of a material nature requiring adjustments had been
fully incorporated into the Financial Statement prior to presentation to
the Board.
ii. The
items in the Management Letter were suggestions for improvement made by
external auditors and these were subsequently considered by the Board
Audit and Risk Management Committee and are being implemented by
Management on an on-going basis.
33. Compliance with the PPA
Briefing Note Allegation 33:non-compliance with the provisions of the Public Procurement Act (PPA).
Response:
i.
The only issue that has been raised to the knowledge of the CBN, is
that the CBN, over a period in the past, did not obtain ‘Certificate of
No Objection’ from the BPP before awarding contracts.
ii.
On 11 August 2008 (before my tenure), the CBN wrote to His Excellency,
President Yar’adua, requesting for certain exemptions in CBN’s
procurement process. See Annexure V. On 20 August 2008, the President
gave his approval to the CBN’s application. See Annexure W.
iii.
In line with this approval, the CBN continued to approve its contracts
in full compliance with the Public Procurement Guidelines, with the only
exception that it did not apply for a ‘Certificate of No Objection’
based on the Presidential waiver.
iv.
It should be noted that the CBN’s own procurement process is more or
less identical to the procurement process under the Public Procurement
Act(PPA). Indeed, the BPP has had occasion to write in the past
commending the CBN’s commitment to transparency and making
recommendations for further improving the process. See Annexure X.
v.
In the course of the CBN interaction with the BPP on this subject, we
provided an explanation by way by a letter of 11 August 2013, informing
the BPP of the Presidential waiver. After an exchange of correspondences
between the CBN and the BPP on this issue, the BPP disagreed that the
Presidential waiver constituted an exemption from the requirement to
obtain a Certificate of No Objection and insisted that the CBN should
start doing so.
vi.
The CBN, out of an abundance of caution, immediately began to obtain
Certificates of No Objection in respect of subsequent procurements
within the stipulated threshold. In this regard, the CBN did obtain
Certificates of No Objection dated 17 December 2013, 31 December 2013
and 14 February 2014. See Annexure Y [A-D] for these. It is important to
note that the contracts for which these Certificate of No Objections
were issued were approved based on the same process that apply to all
the other contracts approved by the Bank. This, in itself, is testimony
that the Bank has always complied with the provisions of the Act.
vii.
It is also important to note that in October 2013, the BPP-appointed
consultant (Messrs SadaIdris & Co) also gave the CBN a good bill of
health after reviewing the bank’s procurement processes for
2010and2011.See Annexure Z. In its final report, the consultant in fact
mentioned that the CBN satisfactorily complied with the provisions of
the PPA.
viii.
Furthermore, the CBN has facilitated compliance with the provisions of
the PPA by making it a requirement for entities seeking to access the
CBN Intervention Projects Fund, to comply with the PPA and to obtain a
Certificate of No Objection to Contract Award, where required. See
Annexure AA for the BPP Letter of No Objection of 12 October 2010in
relation to procurements by the Nigeria Police Force.
34. Unlawful Expenditure on CBN Intervention Projects
Briefing Note Allegation 34: that CBN Interventions in areas like Education, Community, etc. are unlawful.
Response:
i.
A principal focus of the CBN Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
policy in the last decade (even before my tenure) has been the
Educational sector in Nigeria. The CBN Act lists its objects, functions
and prohibited activities, and the Board is empowered to approve the
budget and formulate policies of the CBN. The Intervention Projects
mentioned are CSR interventions that fully comply with the CBN Act and
were duly approved by the Board.
ii.
It is worth noting that the CSR policy of the CBN is consistent with
the activities of many other central banks of developing countries
including, Bank Negara Malaysia, the Bank of Namibia, the Bank of
Botswana and the Bank of Indonesia.
iii.
The Federal Government of Nigeria has been aware, supported and
encouraged the CBN intervention projects, in recognition of their
positive contribution to development.
iv.
During the recent strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities
(ASUU), the CBN intervention projects in universities were an important
fulcrum in the settlement negotiations between the FG and ASUU as borne
out in the Memorandum of Understanding between the FG and ASUU, where
the Intervention Projects were recognised as part of the contributions
of the FG to Education in tertiary institutions.
v.
Furthermore, the FG standing committee on the Implementation of Needs
Assessment of Nigerian Public Universities requested that the CBN
channel a portion of its annual budget to the identified projects. See
Annexure BB- The Interim Report of the Technical Sub-committee of the
Committee on the Implementation on Needs Assessment of Nigerian Public
Universities.
vi. A
major aspect of the CBN intervention projects is the Centre for
Excellence, which are not merely physical structures. The CBN entered
into Memoranda of Understanding with partner Universities to develop a
holistic and multi-faceted scheme which includes the establishment of
Centres for Excellence under which the CBN would, in the principal areas
of Economics and Finance, fund the endowment of Professorial Chairs,
create access for Nigerian students to participate in virtual and remote
learning with foreign tertiary institutions like Harvard, Princeton,
Oxford Universities, and special programs for students of Business and
Economics. In this regard, the CBN is in the process of establishing
Centres for Excellence across the geo-political zones of the country
including:
Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria
University of Nigeria, Enugu
University of Ibadan, Ibadan
Nigeria Defense Academy, Kaduna
University of Lagos, Lagos
University of Maiduguri, Borno
University of Port Harcourt, Rivers
University of Jos, Plateau
Bayero University, Kano
vii.
Consistent with our policy of development, upon the instruction of His
Excellency, the President, the CBN intervened by paying N19.7 Billion to
the Ministry of Police Affairs for the purchase of armoured helicopters
and other security equipment.
viii.
Also, upon the application of the Secretary to the Government of the
Federation, the CBN paid N2.1 Billion for the automation and renovation
of the Federal Executive Council Chamber. See Annexure CC.
ix.
The CBN also initiated, with His Excellency, the President’s approval,
the construction of the International Conference Centre for Nigeria. See
Annexure DD.
x. His
Excellency, the President, also requested that the CBN pay N3.2 Billion
for the construction of a new counter terrorism centre for the office of
the National Security Adviser. See Annexure EE.
xi.
The FRCN itself is a beneficiary of the CBN’s intervention policy as
the CBN paid the sum of N220 Million to the FRCN and also organised the
banking sector, through the Banker’s Committee, to payN280 Million,
totalling a sum of N500 Million, for the construction of the IFRS
Academy. See Annexure FF.
xii. All of these requests were duly submitted to the CBN Board of Directors and were duly approved.
xiii.
It is also important to emphasise that the grants under the
Intervention Program were duly budgeted for, and made on a limited and
selected basis.
xiv.
Intervention in National Security: At the height of security
uncertainties in Nigeria, the Ministry of Police Affairs petitioned His
Excellency, the President, for access to the CBN Intervention Fund. His
Excellency approved that this be done in his letter of 6 October 2010
referenced MPA/PSD/S/0243. See Annexure GG. The CBN Board of Directors
then reviewed and approved this request. See Annexure HH for the
issuance of a grant by the CBN from the Intervention Fund to the
Nigerian Police Force, for the procurement of:
- Armoured Helicopters,
- Armoured Patrol Vans,
- Anti-Riot Equipment;
- Hand held Communication Equipment.
35. Akingbola Petition &the N40 Billion Loan Waiver
Allegation
35: attached to the my letter of suspension was a petition written by
the former Managing Director of the defunct Intercontinental Bank Plc
(ICB now Access Bank Plc)- Erastus Akingbola (Mr Akingbola), on an
alleged waiver of a N40 Billion loan to a Nigerian bank.
Response:
Before
responding to the allegation, it should be stated that the said Mr
Akingbola is a man found by a final judgment of the Courts in England to
have been liable for financial improprieties in the management of the
affairs of ICB.
i. In
his self-serving petition, Mr Akingbola alleged that the CBN, on my
watch, wrote-off a loan in favour of Dr Bukola Saraki. This is untrue.
ii.
The CBN was at no time involved in the decision of ICB (or any other
bank for that matter) to write-off its loans. The CBN never gave prior
approval to the Management and Board of ICB to write-off any particular
loan. It is important to state up-front that all the non executive
directors on the Board of ICB were appointed by its shareholders while
Akingbola was CEO and they were the majority on the Board that approved
the write-offs.
iii.
From the submissions of ICB to the CBN, the said loan write-off,
involved over 1000 customers accounts, totalling N49.07 billion –
including accounts held by companies related to Dr Bukola Saraki.
iv.
It is well known that decisions on loan write-offs in the process of
recovering non-performing loans are taken by the management and board of
banks in line with their internal credit policies. The outstanding
amounts are then written off the books of banks after receiving approval
of the CBN. ICB therefore only approached the CBN, after it has
completed all its negotiations and agreements with its customers, to
seek CBN ‘No Objection’ approval to write-off the loans. Indeed, after a
careful review of the submission by ICB, the CBN initially raised
objections to the justifications provided for the write-off of the debts
on the accounts related to Dr Bukola Saraki. See Annexure II.
v.
In response to these objections, the Management of ICB wrote explaining
the rationale for the Board decision. (This is also contained in
Annexure II). It is important to note that decisions on loan write-offs
involve significant exercise of judgement by those involved. Usually a
number of factors come into play including whether or not the loan is
secured, the value of collateral and if the bank is in a legal position
to realise same, the general liquidity in the secondary market and the
liquidity position of the bank itself which determines if it is
negotiating from a position of strength or weakness. Ultimately, while
we may debate these issues, the judgement has to be exercised by those
actually managing the bank in the best interest of shareholders and the
responsibility lies with them.
vi.
In the case of ICB it is well known that the bank was in a grave
situation as a result of years of mismanagement by Akingbola. The loans
in question were largely loans secured by shares in the capital market
and therefore were vulnerable to what is called Market risk. The
collapse of the Nigerian capital market following the Global Financial
Crisis in 2008 meant that the collateral for these loans had been
totally wiped out. The losses suffered by the bank were therefore a
result of very bad credit decisions taken by Mr. Akingbola himself which
led to the bank taking on huge amounts of risk that crystallised. In
this situation all that was left for Management was to minimise its
losses and recover as much as it could before the situation got worse.
vii.
With specific reference to the ICB loans to companies related to Dr
Saraki, the bank’s Management explained that there were four loans
totalling N9.489 billion, of which three were margin loans secured by
shares and the fourth was secured by real estate. The value of the
collateral underlying the Margin loans had been eroded and the bank was
compelled to give waivers to make some recovery while still retaining
the shares for sale at a future date. It should also be added that the
real estate used to secure the non-margin loan were not perfected by the
management under Mr. Akingbola – which is another indication of bad
credit policies under Mr. Akingbola.
viii.
There was no waiver granted to Dr Saraki on the fourth loan as it was
paid in full (plus accumulated interest). Of the N9.4 billion, a total
of N4.04 billion was repaid, representing a waiver of 57.42 %. Losses on
Margin loans were common at this time in the entire industry. To
illustrate this, when AMCON purchased margin loans from Intervened banks
on December 30, 2010 it offered a premium of 60% above the average
price of the shares in the preceding 60 days. In spite of these generous
terms AMCON paid an average of only 24.27% of the value of margin loans
purchased. Without the premium AMCON would have purchased the loans at
15.17% of their book value. This actually would suggest that the
Management of ICB did get a reasonably fair deal for the bank in these
circumstances. The best construction we can place on Mr Akingbola’s
petition is that he is complaining that the Management that succeeded
him could have done a better job of cleaning up the mess he created and
left behind.
ix. As
for Akingbola’s allegation of fraud, conspiracy, forgery and stealing
against Dr Saraki in connection with Joy Petroleum Ltd, the Central Bank
was in the process of collaborating with law enforcement agents
involved in the investigations when we received a copy of a letter
written by the Honourable Attorney-General and Minister of Justice
declaring that these allegations were unfounded and there was no basis
in law for any criminal investigation in respect thereof. See Annexure
HH. The Central Bank therefore cannot be held in any manner responsible
for this decision as this was a position taken by the nation’s chief law
officer.
36. Conclusion
i.
It is now clear that each of the allegations made by the FRCN in the
Briefing Note could easily have been resolved upon a simple request to
the CBN for clarification or a little more careful review. There is no
doubt that if the CBN had received the Briefing Note, which was prepared
in June 2013, all the misconceptions, misrepresentations and erroneous
inferences contained therein would have been cleared, and the misleading
of His Excellency would have been avoided.
ii.
It is now my sincere hope that, having painstakingly provided detailed
explanations, backed by verifiable documents, His Excellency, Mr
President will find the response satisfactory, and in line with his
adherence to fairness and justice, revisit and redress the issue of my
suspension.
iii.
Furthermore, it is my wish that His Excellency, Mr President, will apply
the same rationale and rigour to other agencies of the Federal
Government that have had serious allegations and queries levied against
them, and presume upon them to provide responses and explanations with
the same level of clarity and transparency.
iv.
In closing, I would like to place on record the dogged professionalism
and patriotism of the staff of the CBN. They have, over the years,
served this country creditably, loyally and diligently.
I hereby restate my enduring passion for, and commitment to, our great country Nigeria.
Signed:
Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, CON
Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria
Comments
Post a Comment