A recent audit at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) may have landed the governor, Lamido Sanusi, in hot waters as he is said to have been served with a query by the Presidency.
The forensic audit which was handled by foreign experts brought in by the government revealed some financial activities inconsistent with the position of government.
Sanusi is said to have already responded to the queries and they are being studied to provide background for certain actions the government could take against him.
According to an inside source, the audit report had also indicted the CBN board down the line, with a number of steps recommended for action.
One of the measures, it was gathered, was to ensure that the National Assembly carried through the planned amendment of the CBN Act, to ensure that the budget was approved by the lawmakers.
“The government discovered a number of inconsistencies in the books of the CBN and there is also the question of failure to establish and build institutional capacity to back up government reforms.
“The government is concerned about agriculture but, so far, the CBN has reduced funding of that sector to mere interventions, after it failed to build agricultural banks and other credit agencies that should provide needed support to the sector.
“If care is not taken, the reforms embarked upon by the current minister will not be institutionalised and that will have multiplier effects on the achievements of this government,” a source said.
It also said the government had equally asked experts to X-ray the impact of CBN policies in recent times, especially the steps taken alongside banking consolidation policy.
It was confirmed that the report frowned on the huge turnout of workers as a result of the implementation of the policy, which was described as a huge disincentive for the original policy.
As a result of the damning reports, it was gathered that Sanusi was actually penciled in for sack, information that triggered a flurry of lobbying activities.
A number of influential senators were said to have been reached immediately the query went to Sanusi, while some influential northern leaders also started lobbying the presidency to shelve the planned removal.
“A number of issues were raised about issue of CBN autonomy, but I can tell you that a date was actually set for Sanusi’s ouster last week. The lobbying appeared to have worked,” a source said.
It was also gathered that the administration had been embarrassed on several occasions on the political incorrectness of certain actions taken by the CBN governor.
It was learnt that the heat on the CBN governor had made him change his earlier promise to leave before the expiration of his tenure and that he had recently told his close associates he would, at least, stay on till June next year.