The Coalition for Transparency and Economic Reforms, COTER, has called on President Buhari to relieve Godwin Emeefiele, Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN Governor of his appointment.
COTER made up of 25 CSOs stated in a petition, in Abuja, on Tuesday that the CBN Governor has a myriad of allegations to answer for, and should be directed to make himself available for investigation.
In the petition jointly signed by COTER President, Dr Peter Chima Chukwu and General Secretary, Mallam Auta Ibrahim Koko, and sent to President Muhammadu Buhari, the civil groups said Emefiele has refused to submit himself to security agencies for probe on allegations bordering on terrorism financing and economic sabotage.
Recall that the Department of State Services, DSS, had last year tried to arrest Emefiele, to question him on these allegations, but was prevented from doing so by a federal court in Abuja which ruled that the secret police had no substantial evidence to carry out the arrest.
Since he got the reprieve, the embattled Emefiele, Abuja sources said has been moving around with military escort to dissuade any attempt by security agencies to get him arrested.
The CBN governor is also said to be enjoying a presidential order which prevents DSS and other security agencies from arresting him or any official of the apex bank for probe.
But COTER said it’s wrong for Emefiele to be enjoying a presidential cover despite a coterie of financial allegations against him and other top officials of the bank.
The purported presidential order insulating the apex bank boss from probe COTER said, has put a question mark on the administration which claims to be fighting corruption.
The CSOs said the President must act swiftly to save his administration from the public perception that it’s only paying lip service to the issue of graft, adding that it cannot afford to bequeath to the new administration a corrupt CBN.
COTER said: “Your Excellency should immediately direct the CBN governor to immediately step aside from office as the apex bank’s boss for proper investigation of the CBN.
“Emefiele should be ordered to make himself available for investigations to clear his name. It is imperative Emefiele proves his innocence before the investigative bodies. Mr. President, this is imperative if you want to maintain your hard-earned reputation, sir.
“Mr. President, directing Emefiele to so do has become imperative because Nigerians, who believe in the anti-corruption stance of your administration, are keenly waching and wondering whether the indicted CBN governor will be accorded the sacred cow privilege and allowed to go scot-free under the watch of Your Excellency.
“In fact, the CBN governor should be ordered and compelled to immediately submit his office and person for necessary probe.
“The various security reports on the CBN Governor should be made public and published for all to see.
“Your Excellency must order the recovery of the monies stolen by Emefiele under your administration since 2015. COTER believes that your administration should not hand over a corruption-infested CBN to the incoming administration.
“Your Excellency, Ways and Means request figures presented by Emefiele and the Minister of Finance to the National Assembly for approval over the years should be immediately further investigated. The figures have been found to not only be fraudulent but also incorrect. It’s time to scrutinise the over-inflated figures.
“COTER also requests that travel ban be placed by the Federal Government on Emefiele and other indicted persons as the CBN governor along with his other accomplices, according to security reports, is now making frantic efforts to escape from the country in this month of March.
“Mr President, sir, the Coalition is also calling for the setting up of a special consolidated account by the government for the safekeeping of funds recovered from Emefiele and others.
“COTER will further advise Your Excellency that the Federal Government should offset all debts owed and loans from the huge funds to be recovered from Emefiele and his cohorts before your administration leaves office so that the incoming administration will start on a clean slate. We don’t want the incoming administration to inherit debts. Nigerians will no longer tolerate complaints about Government’s inability to perform due to huge debt owed by a previous administration.
“Above all, COTER demands the immediate arrest and prosecution of Emefiele and all others involved in all these monumental economic sabotage and heinous financial crimes against the Nigerian state,” COTER said.
