Modest Thoughts with
(Modest Thoughts with Ayuba Yilgak'ha, June 12, 2023; 08116181263)*
When transition speaks, guilty men quiver. This hypothesis is a classical reality during the adolescence stage in humans and governance transitions as we are currently witnessing in Nigeria and many states of the country. On June 9, 2023, news filtered on social media about the embattled CBN governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele. As it stands, I do not know whether he should be addressed as former governor of the apex bank or embattled head of the institution that could be returned when found innocent after investigation.
The press that floated the media was signed by one Willie Bassey, Director, Information on behalf of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation. The title and full text of the press release are reproduced verbatim for readers' appreciation:
"OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY TO THE GOVERNMENT OF THE FEDERATION
"PRESS RELEASE
"PRESIDENT TINUBU SUSPENDS HEMIFIELD FROM OFFICE AS CENTRAL BANK GOVERNOR
"President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has suspended the Central Bank Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, CFR, from office with immediate effect.
"This is the sequel to the ongoing investigation of his office and the planned reforms in the financial sector of the economy.
"Mr. 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."
For obvious reasons, upon seeing and reading the press paper, I placed a puzzling reaction on my WhatsApp status aimed at gauging the mood of the public on the latest news in town. It reads: "CBN GOVERNOR, GODWIN EMEFIELE IS DOWN, WHO SHOULD BE NEXT? YOUR GUESS IS AS GOOD AS MINE:...!Modest Thought is just thinking!"
Many replies started pouring in but I found one attractive. It was a question from one of my contacts which reads: "Who pls oo!!
No, guess here o!! Help out!!!". My initial take was that the person asking the question might either not be in Nigeria for a while, secluded or could he be out of touch with recent happenings around the country? Just as Cleopas and Simon would ask Jesus on their way to Emmaus from Jerusalem as recorded in the book of Luke 24: 18 - 35.
Anyway, I replied promptly saying: 'Professor Mahmud Yakubu is on my mind but will the president sack him for having been the alleged beneficiary of the former's alleged abracadabra associated with the management of the 2023 electoral processes and outcomes?' It is no news that some frontline presidential candidates are in court to challenge the declaration as the winner and the consequent swearing-in of Tinubu as President of Nigeria by the Independent Election Commission (INEC) which Mahmud chairs!
Anyway, the mind of the man who asked the referenced question could not have gone the way of Professor Mahmud because those who are likely to politically sweat under this present regime are perceived political enemies who did not support Tinubu's most cherished political, that is, presidential ambition, especially, those who served in the former administration of Buhari.
I cannot hold brief for Emefiele but because of trends in politics of vendetta, what the president is likely to do with those who are at cross purpose with his highest political ambition. Things are happening very fast, it has been reported that Godwin Emefiele is already in the dragnet of the Department of State Security Service (DSS) for interrogation. For me, if he is found wanting, then, the law should take it cause but which law are we talking about here? Nigeria is full of ironies. Ideally, those who come to equity are expected to come with clean hands but, substantially, this is not the case in Nigeria!
In this country, state institutions are so weak to the advantage of corrupt elements. It seems, with illicit wealth, a criminal is likely to escape justice effortlessly. It is so sad to observe that in Nigeria, the dubious survival strategy is for a potential criminal to learn to steal big and, then, use the elicited wealth to bribe his or her way into vantaged corridors or positions of power where crime is seemingly protected and legitimized.
Nigerians are living witnesses to how highly placed people in government who shortchanged the system in the most wicked manner faked ill-health while appearing before panels of enquires or oversight or special committees at the National Assembly and after those staged comedies nothing will be heard about the issue or issues again because a lot of water has gone under the bridge. Bribery and corruption, that is, dubious giving and taking, call it exchange of blood fortune has taken place and the matter dies naturally without any mention of it again!
The legal and prosecuting system or philosophy has to be changed if any progress can be made in stemming all manners of corruption in the system. Left for me alone, the idea of declaring a suspect innocent until proven guilty by the accused which is the practice in the Nigerian legal system should be changed so that any suspected person is declared guilty until such a person proves himself innocent as it is the case in the United States of America (USA). The paradigm has to shift because the burden of proof in any case is often very heavy and criminals could easily leverage it to escape justice. If anything, such a heavy burden should be on suspected persons.
Born on August 4, 1961, Godwin Ifeanyi Emefiele, CFR is a Nigerian economist, banker and, most recently, politician who served as governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria and unsuccessfully aspired to be Nigeria's president during party primaries leading the just concluded 2023 general poll. He will go down in history as the only serving CBN Governor, who against all odds and the conservative nature of his banking profession, contested to be president of Nigeria.
From the plump job of a CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele is entering a new but trying phase of his life. The question which begs for answers at this juncture is thus: Is Godwin Emefiele a victim of circumstance or a culprit caught in the web of institutional corruption? Recall, the embattled CBN governor was appointed by former President GGoodluckEbele Jonathan on June 14, 2014, following the removal of Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, who later became Emir of Kano under former governor Kwankwaso's regime but was deposed by Tanduje's administration.
Perhaps, Emefiele is the longest-serving CBN Governor in Nigeria who presided over many monetary policy decisions in the country including full implementation of the cashless policy which started in 2010 under Sanusi's watch, and the currency redesign that has somersaulted.
In particular, the currency redesign and cashless policy which were concurrently implemented by the apex bank close to the 2023 general election which produced Bola Ahmed Tinubu as president were perceived, in some quarters as a deliberate ploy by former president Buhari who recently handed over power to the incumbent with his political associates to frustrate the incumbent's chance of becoming Nigeria's president. Whether this insinuation was true is a matter of conjecture. What is in the public space is the excuse the apex bank gave for the implementation of the policies.
According to the press released by the CBN on October 26, 2022, the justification and attraction for the currency redesign were predicated on glaring contradictions arising from the management of the current series of banknotes and currency in circulation, particularly, those outside the banking system in Nigeria. It explained that in recent times, currency management in the country has faced several daunting challenges that have continued to rise in magnitude and sophistication with attendant and unintended implications for the integrity of both the CBN and the country. One of such primary challenges includes significant hoarding of banknotes by members of the public with statistics showing that over 80 percent of currency in circulation is outside the purview of commercial banks. The cashless policy and the currency redesign were, in particular, targeted at the repositioning of Nigeria's monetary policy towards better performance for inclusive growth, stability, and sustainable economic development to take place.
Not satisfied with the justifications provided, however, the matter was challenged and tested in court up to the supreme court by mostly pro-Tinubu governors like Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna, Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi and Nyesom Wike of Rivers amongst others. The currency redesign was consequently scuttled but the CBN stuck to its decision of continuing with it. The reality now is that the policy has badly somersaulted or halted and it is no news that Tinubu won the presidency and has since been sworn in on May 29, 2023!
A week or thereabout before the inauguration of President Tinubu, it was widely rumored that former president Buhari had granted study leave for Emefiele to travel for school abroad. Some public observers felt that if the leave rumor turns out to be true, then, the suspended CBN boss will be planning an escape from a perceived vendetta that could come from the new government. The truth or otherwise of this insinuation is a matter of speculation too and only time shall tell.
What is known is the list of weighty allegations the government has against Emefiele which include money laundering, politically motivated employment to power brokers toward brightening the chance of his presidential ambition amongst other weighty breaches of public trust. Anyways, skeptics have their reservations about the objectivity of the investigation against Emefiele but time shall tell who is right and who is wrong and what can be done about it.
As Nigerians watch the investigation unfold, what is fresh on their minds is the possibility of another high-profile government official going down the abyss or traveling the Dasuki Gate road of the former National Security Adviser (NSA), Ibrahim Dasuki code-named "Dasuki Gate" and the fall of the former Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekeremadu. At a point, these men were powerful movers and shakers of things in the politics and governance of Nigeria but the table has turned against them with ffar-reachinglessons for us all to learn that power is transient and no matter how powerful you become, the passage of time can bring you down to nothing, especially, when you have skeletons in your cupboard!
Let me project that Emefiele's travail might end up becoming the Dasuki Gate of the present time and should that happens, then it will be proper to code name it Emefiele Gate which will provide a lead way into Pandora's box of the immediate past regime. Let me assert that genuine and thorough investigation/interrogation of the past regime of Buhari and its extended legacies (those appointed by him but whose tenure extends into the current time) is a welcome development. However, it is only good that the searchlight be put everywhere without any political bias, sentiment, or vendetta.
Corruption is a menace in Nigeria and any initiative or action that could help the country root out this hydra-headed monster is expressly welcome. Godwin Emefiele has nothing to fear if his hands are clean. I wish all Nigerians a happy June 12 democracy celebration!
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