Tinubu suspends Emefiele as CBN Governor

President Bola Tinubu has suspended Godwin Emefiele as the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) with immediate effect.

This was made known via a statement issued on Friday, June 9, by the Director of Information, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Willie Bassey.

The statement read: “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has suspended the Central Bank Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele, CFR, from office with immediate effect.

“This is sequel to the ongoing investigation of his office and the planned reforms in the financial sector of the economy.

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“Mr Emefiele has been directed to immediately hand over the affairs of his office to the Deputy Governor (Operations Directorate), who will act as the Central Bank Governor pending the conclusion of the investigation and the reforms.”

The Star recalls that there were series of allegations against Emefiele and the immediate past Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, over the redesign of old N200, N500, and N1,000 notes.

The CBN boss and Malami were also alleged to have misled former President Muhammadu Buhari to defy the Supreme Court order on the naira redesign policy.

The naira redesign policy brought untold hardship to Nigerians, with many saying Emefiele and Malami must take personal responsibility for an act of illegality.

The Supreme Court, while nullifying the policy, said it is an affront to the 1999 Constitution.

The apex court also ruled that the old N200, N500, and N1,000 notes should remain legal tender until December 31, 2023.

The Star