Buhari reveals why he can’t probe Emefiele over his political

President Muhammadu Buhari has stated that he’s not in the position to probe the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, Godwin Emefiele, for becoming a presidential aspirant for the 2023 election.

Buhari said while he appointed Emefiele as the CBN governor, probing him to ensure he didn’t break the laws guiding the chief financial regulator’s office was the responsibility of the central bank’s board of directors.

According to report, Emefiele filed a suit against the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to enable him contest for the presidential election in 2023.

Emefiele had reportedly planned to run on the platform of the ruling party, All Progressive Congress (APC) but his political ambition raised eyebrows, considering he headed CBN, where INEC keeps some sensitive electoral materials for safekeeping.

President Buhari said the board will determine whether the CBN governor’s actions had fallen foul of the laws in place to ensure he could most effectively carry out his duties.

He admitted that Emefiele’s action was unprecedented, but somewhat defended the decision of the CBN governor on Tuesday.

“The CBN governor is appointed by the President. But this appointment is subject to confirmation by the Nigerian Senate. Ultimately, it will be for the CBN’s board of directors to determine whether a CBN governor’s actions have fallen foul of the laws in place to ensure he can most effectively carry out his duties”, he told Bloomberg.

The CBN board is chaired by Emefiele, which means a probe by the directors can only be conducted if the CBN governor steps aside to avoid influencing the report of the members.

The CBN board members include Aishah Ahmad, Deputy Governor, Financial Systems Stability Directorate; Edward Adamu, Deputy Governor, Corporate Services Directorate; Folashodun Shonubi, Deputy Governor, Operations Directorate and Kingsley Obiora, Deputy Governor, Economic Policy Directorate.

Others are Non-executive Board Members; Justitia O. Nnabuko, Adeola Adetunji, Mike Obadan, Ummu Jalingo, Ahmed Idris (Accountant General of The Federation), Abdu Abubakar and Aliyu Ahmed.