Eight Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) directors who worked closely with former governor Godwin Emefiele have been issued early retirement notices.
According to reports, the move was approved by the current CBN Governor, Yemi Cardoso.
The directors, some of whom were initially assigned to a branch of the bank, FSS 2020, under the direction of the governor, whose office is located in Maitama district of Abuja since November 24, 2023, were kept in a kind of group Wait for “further instructions,” and you will be asked to leave the CBN.
Sources said that some of the directors had already received the termination letters since Friday, but they could not clearly state under what conditions those affected were terminated.
“We don’t know whether they were given early retirement or their appointments were terminated outright”, a source told DailyTrust on the condition of anonymity.
Although sources could not confirm whether those who received early retirement letters were found guilty of a crime, they said that, according to most of our sources, the main reason for the affected officials’ dismissal was “because they had worked very closely with the immediate past governor of the bank, Mr. Godwin Emefiele”.
The decision has caused great concern among CBN employees who fear that this could be a prelude to further layoffs by the current management.
Recall that the CBN had redeployed no less than 150 employees of the Banking Supervision Department (BSD), one of the 29 departments of the bank, to Lagos.
The move sparked mixed reactions across the country, with many claiming it was an attempt to drive northern employees from the facility.
But the CBN dismissed these insinuations, insisting that they were part of a proper restructuring of the bank to ensure that regular on-site audits of the country’s 24 banks were carefully carried out, as most of these national and regional banks are headquartered in this country would have Lagos.
He also cited the desire to relieve the pressure on the bank’s corporate headquarters as the reason for the relocation.
It was widely alleged that many politicians during the Buhari administration abused their privileges to secure appointments for their children and relatives in the CBN.
Meanwhile, some of the directors affected by the current CBN leadership’s latest lawsuit have threatened to challenge the decision, while others said they would accept the dismissal as the CBN has become a “toxic work environment.”
