The
suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, has
issued a statement responding to allegations of financial recklessness leveled
against him by the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria and the Nigerian
presidency.
In
the lengthy statement distributed to the media early this morning, Mr. Sanusi
denied any wrongdoing, saying he had
already sent a detailed response to the presidency.
Read
his full press statement below.
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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 Adviserto 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:
1.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
NSPMPwas 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 CBNneither engaged, paid nor claimed to
have paid Emirates Airlines. Rather, the CBN engaged andentered intoan Air
Charter Services Agreementwith Emirate Touch Aviation ServicesLimited, 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 changedits 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 AnnexureE 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 asAnnexure G as well as the
certificate for the Debenture as Annexure H.
iii. It is evident that as at the time theFRCN
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 fromepileptic
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 crystalized, 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 tenfoldto N80Billion,while in 2013,
our contribution, based on the audited accounts, was N159Billion.
ii. It is noteworthy that inthe 5 yearsof 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 receivedits 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. thePower 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. theNigerian 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.
Thisfurther 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 serviceshas 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 wasapproved 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 CBNincreased 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. SeeAnnexure 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 themoney 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 moneybanks 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 CBNstaff. 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 Mfor the letter to the Accountant-General and the Accountant-General’s
response ofJanuary 29th, 2014.
25. Investment in International Islamic
Liquidity Management Corporation
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 whichit was made as investment of
Reservesby 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 Pfor
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 statutoryand 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 Ufor 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
processesfor 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 Governmentof 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- TheInterim 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 andFinance, 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 HHfor the issuance of a grant by the CBN from the Intervention Fund to
the Nigerian Police Force, for the procurement of:
o Armoured Helicopters,
o Armoured Patrol Vans,
o Anti-Riot Equipment;
o 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
(MrAkingbola), 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 MrAkingbola 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, MrAkingbola
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. BukolaSaraki.
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. BukolaSaraki. 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. Akingbolahimself 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 spiteof 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 inferencescontained 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
Sources: SR
Sources: SR
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