The news:
- President Bola Tinubu has suspended the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele.
- The governor has been directed to hand over to the deputy governor, Folashodun Adebisi Shonubi.
- Willie Bassey, Director of Information, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, said Emefiele is being investigated.
After Alhaji Abdulkadir Ahmed, who served as CBN governor for 11 years, — from 1982 to 1993 — Godwin Emefiele is the second longest-running Governor, serving since 2014.
However, his nine-year reign might be coming to an end as President Bola Tinubu has suspended Emefiele, following an investigation into his office.
“This is a sequel to the ongoing investigation of his office and the planned reforms in the financial sector of the economy.” a statement by the Director of Information — Willie Bassey — said in a statement.
Folashodun Shonubi, Deputy Governor, Operations Directorate, will act as the Central Bank Governor until the investigations into Emefiele’s office have been completed.
With over 47.9k tweets, Emefiele started trending on Twitter a few hours after his suspension was announced.
Unsurprisingly, Nigerians have expressed delight at the news with one Twitter user saying the news is enough for people who support different political factions to dine together.
The governor’s naira redesign plunged the country into a cash crunch that made everyday transactions difficult for Nigerians. Although Emefiele stated that the decision was in line with global best practices, many criticised the execution.
When he was still a candidate in the presidential polls, Tinubu also expressed his concerns about the policy, saying it will mete out untold hardship upon Nigerians.
While Nigerians celebrate Emefiele’s suspension, there’s still a question about the legitimacy of it.
