Emefiele out, Shonubi in: Mixed reactions trail suspension of Emefiele as CBN Gov.

…Wike hails Tinubu over suspension of Emefiele

…Eviction of Emefiele commendable — Shehu Sani

…Tinubu is not here to play — Deji Adeyanju

By Sodiq Adelakun

Mixed reactions have continued to trail the suspension of Godwin Emefiele as Central Bank Governor by President Bola Tinubu.

Recall that it was announced on Friday night in a statement by Willie Bassey, Director of Information at the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

The CBN Governor’s suspension is a sequel to the ongoing investigation of his office and the planned reforms in the economy’s financial sector, the statement said.

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 suspended CBN governor assumed office in 2014 after succeeding Lamido Sanusi, who was equally suspended from office under controversial circumstances by President Goodluck Jonathan few months before the expiration of his tenure.

Meanwhile, Godwin his Deputy (Operations Directorate) Folashodun Adebisi Shonubi, has been announced to act in his capacity in the meantime.

Following the immediate suspension of the Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Godwin Emefiele, from office, his Deputy (Operations Directorate) Folashodun Adebisi Shonubi, has been announced to act in his capacity in the meantime.

President Bola Tinubu, on Friday night suspended Emefiele. The suspension was announced in a statement issued by the Director of Information, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Willie Bassey.

Bassey explained that the suspension of the CBN governor is based on an ongoing investigation as well as because of a planned reform of the financial sector.

By law, one of the deputies must complete Emefiele’s tenure, which expires May 2024.

The central bank has four deputy governors but Shonubi was considered above Aishah Ahmed, Edward Adamu, and Kingsley Obiora.

Following controversy and reticence of The Department of State Services (DSS), that Godwin Emefiele, is in its custody, there was clarification that the suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, was in the custody of Department of State Services (DSS) custody, the secret police has confirmed.

This is according to a statement by the Public Relations Officer (PRO), Peter Afunanya, on Saturday.

“The Department of State Services (DSS) hereby confirms that Mr Godwin Emefiele, the suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is now in its custody for some investigative reasons,” it said.

“The public, particularly the Media, is enjoined to apply utmost caution in the reportage and narratives concerning this.”

This comes hours after the DSS has denied widespread claims that Emefiele was in its custody.

Reports of Emefiele’s arrest were widely shared online, moments after his suspension was made public on Friday evening.

Meanwhile, there have been several reactions relating to the suspension of Emefiele.

Wike hails Tinubu over suspension of Emefiele

The immediate past Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, has hailed the suspension of Godwin Emefiele as the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

In a statement on Friday issued by his media team, Wike expressed his admiration for President Tinubu over the decision to suspend Emefiele as the boss of the apex bank.

The former Rivers governor, who has been critical of Emefiele’s policies, notably the Naira redesign, commended the President for the bold and timely action.

Also, Wike applauded President Buhari for endorsing uniformity in the retirement age and pension of judicial officers across the country, saying that the move will rejuvenate the nation’s judiciary and bring about positive changes.

Eviction of Emefiele commendable — Shehu Sani

Former Kaduna Central lawmaker alleged that the CBN was used as a cash cow for the elites and an Automated Teller Machine (ATM) for the “cabals”.

He stated this in his Twitter handle, Sani stated that the suspension of Emefiele was a commendable move.

He, however, advised President Tinubu to employ a team of auditors outside the CBN to properly probe the apex bank and give an account of how it was managed under former president Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

He wrote, “The eviction of Emefiele is commendable. The appointment of Shonubi as acting Governor is commendable. But the Housecleaning of the CBN can only be done by engaging a team of auditors from OUTSIDE of the CBN. Only they can professionally and thoroughly probe the apex Bank and tell the country how the Bank was run under Buhari’s Emefiele. The CBN was operated as an ATM of the Cabal, a Canteen and Cash Cow of the parasitic elites of the past administration.”

Tinubu is not here to play — Deji Adeyanju

Also, The convener of Concerned Nigerians, Deji Adeyanju, reacted to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s decision to suspend the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele from office with immediate effect.

Reacting, Adeyanju, in a tweet via his Twitter handle, said that Tinubu is not here to play, adding that he likes Emefiele’s suspension.

He tweeted, “President Tinubu suspends Emefiele. Tinubu is not here to play, I like it.”

In the same vein, The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), Dr. Muda Yusuf said the suspension of Godwin Emefiele as the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) should not come as a surprise.

The CPPE boss said it would have been impractical to reform the apex bank and review some of its major policies with Emefiele remaining in the seat as governor.

Yusuf added that the brazen involvement of Emefiele in partisan politics was an aberration and most unbecoming, adding that it was damaging to the credibility of the CBN and the reputation of the former Governor.

He said, “President Bola Tinubu’s administration is at variance with the policy disposition of the CBN under Emefiele.

“The monetary and foreign exchange policy thrusts of President Tinubu’s administration are at variance with the policy disposition of the CBN under Emefiele.

“President Tinubu was very clear in his inaugural speech about his resentment of some current CBN policies such as the multiple exchange rate and the Naira redesign policy.”

Yusuf noted that the President had earlier hinted at a plan to “ clean house” at the CBN, citing that his plans for reforms would not have worked with Emefiele still in charge.

He said,“The president also hinted at a house cleaning plan for the CBN. It is impractical to reform the apex bank and review some of its major policies with Mr Emefiele remaining on the seat as governor.

“The truth is that there is a major compatibility issue. The parting of ways was inevitable.”