The CBN, under Emefiele, produced something different from what former President Muhammadu Buhari approved.
A former acting Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Folashodun Shonubi, testified on Wednesday before Justice Maryann Anenih of the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama, Abuja, that politics and internal maneuverings influenced the naira redesign exercise in 2022.
Shonubi, who previously held the position of Deputy Governor of Operations before becoming the acting CBN Governor and is now retired, appeared as a witness in the trial of former CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele.
In his testimony, Shonubi asserted that the redesigned naira notes introduced by the CBN under Emefiele differed from what was approved by ex-President Muhammadu Buhari.
He highlighted that political factors played a significant role in the redesign of the currency, which occurred ahead of the 2023 elections.
“The currency redesign of 2022 was the only one I was part of. When we had meetings with the defendant (Emefiele), he said there were politics and intrigues around the whole exercise,” Shonubi remarked, though he did not go into further details about the political aspects involved.
When Emefiele’s lawyer, Olalekan Ojo (SAN), inquired about whether there was presidential authorization for the naira redesign, Shonubi confirmed that Emefiele had presented a document during one of the CBN’s Committee of Governors’ (COG) meetings, which bore the President’s signature. However, he revealed that the naira notes eventually produced by the CBN under Emefiele’s direction were not aligned with what was originally approved by the President.
“The CBN, under Emefiele, produced something different from what former President Muhammadu Buhari approved,” he stated.
Shonubi further stated that he had not come across any correspondence from the Committee of Governors or the CBN Board protesting or questioning the President’s approval for the currency redesign. However, when asked if he was fully informed about the interactions between President Buhari and Emefiele regarding the redesign, Shonubi admitted that he was not, clarifying that Emefiele alone handled communications with the President on the matter.
He also revealed that he had been invited by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in connection with the naira redesign case and had provided statements to the agency. However, he noted that there was no direct confrontation between him and Emefiele concerning these statements during the EFCC inquiry.
Shonubi also alleged that the memo presented to the President regarding the currency redesign was prepared solely by Emefiele, without following the proper procedures of the CBN.
He outlined that standard protocol requires the Currency Management Department to first recommend the redesign. “After that, a proposal would be submitted to the Committee of Governors for review. Upon the COG’s approval, it would then be forwarded to the CBN Board, which would make a recommendation to the President. Following the President’s approval, the bank would form an internal committee to implement the redesign,” Shonubi explained.
As a former Deputy Governor, Shonubi noted that he was a member of both the COG and the CBN Board. He further alleged that Emefiele had disregarded a recommendation made by the Currency Department in early 2021 for the redesign of the naira.
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“While serving as Deputy Governor, there was a time when the naira was redesigned — that was in 2022. The CBN did not follow the procedures for redesigning the currency. I was a member of the CBN Board as Deputy Governor, and the Chairman of both the COG and Board was the Governor,” he added.
Shonubi detailed that in early 2021, the Currency Department had made a proposal for a currency redesign. “A paper was presented to me, but on the instruction of the Governor (CBN), it was stepped down. In 2022, we again presented the paper and were asked to hold on,” Shonubi recounted.
He also revealed that in mid-October 2022, the Deputy Governors of the CBN were summoned to a meeting in the Governor’s office, where Emefiele informed them that he had received presidential approval for the redesign.
“He showed us the memo, Mr. President’s signature, and the instructions on the last page,” Shonubi added.
Following his testimony, the court adjourned the hearing until October 9.
