The whereabouts of the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, is unknown since his altercation with President Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday over his resignation.
The president had accused Sanusi (on telephone) of leaking the letter of the alleged missing $49.8 billion from the Federation Account to former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, which he copiously quoted in his indicting letter to Jonathan.
But Sanusi had denied the president’s claim, saying the letter was in the Ministry of Finance, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), State House and even in the CBN.
He argued that anybody could have leaked the letter to the former president. But apparently not satisfied with the answer Jonathan was said to have insisted that Sanusi leaves office on retirement. After a strong altercation between Sanusi and the president, the governor was reported to have called a “family” meeting of selected staff where he told them that he was not going to resign, neither was he going on leave until his term expires on June 2, 2014.
However, since Wednesday, January 8, 2014, nobody has sighted him in his office neither did he hand over his responsibilities to any of his deputies. Sources also told Daily Sun that Sanusi did not travel abroad for any official assignment raising concern over his wareabouts.
The Deputy Governor, Operations, Mr. Tunde Lemo, who would have taken over Sanusi’s responsibilities, was billed to retire on January 10, 2014.
A statement from the bank indicates that Lemo will retire after serving two full terms of five years each. His retirement is with effect from January 11, 2014. He is expected to be pulled out of service today being the last working day before his retirement date.
Prior to his appointment as a Deputy Governor in CBN in 2003, Lemo was the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Wema Bank Nigeria Plc between 2000 and 2003.
Also, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi (born on July 31, 1961) was appointed Governor of the CBN on June 3, 2009. He is a career banker and ranking Fulani nobleman as well as a respected Islamic scholar. The renowned global financial intelligence magazine, The Banker, published by the Financial Times, had conferred on Sanusi two awards on Sanusi. He has been recognised with the global award of Central Bank Governor of the Year, as well as for Central Bank Governor of the Year for Africa. The TIME magazine also listed Sanusi in its TIMES 100 list of most influentialpeople of 2011.
Meanwhile, the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) has warned President Goodluck Jonathan to tread softly over the claim of forceful removal of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi.
The party cautioned the Presidency on its economic impact. APC’s Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said in the statement he issued yesterday that advising Sanusi to step down on the basis of a mere allegation that he leaked the letter he wrote to the President, over the unremitted $49.8 billion oil revenue, does not augur well for an economy that is already on crutches.
News-Portal Nigeria © 2014
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