The Chairman, Senate Committee on Ecology and Environment, Dr. Bukola Saraki, on Saturday said the suspension of the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mallam Lamido Sanusi, by President Goodluck Jonathan was unconstitutional.
Speaking with journalists in Ilorin, he stated that Jonathan’s action portrayed him as a President who was ill-advised.
According to him, the Act that established the apex bank made it mandatory for the President to revert to the Senate for confirmation and removal of the CBN governor.
Saraki said, “Governance is a continuous process, if the tenure of the incumbent had not lapsed, how can we appoint another person to replace him? That is a total breach of the law.
“With my knowledge of the CBN Act and the relevant section, which I have gone through, no part of that Act supports the action taken by the President.
“And I think this kind of thing is not about Sanusi, it is even more about the new governor, who is coming in. Can that governor really say his tenure is five years?”
Saraki said Sanusi’s suspension could have far reaching effects on the independence and autonomy of the CBN.
He added that it could also negatively impact on national economy and discourage foreign direct investments in Nigeria.
Saraki, who is a former governor of Kwara State, said the Senate would address the suspension dispassionately.
“The independence of the position of the governor of Central Bank is no longer there and there are investors outside the country, fund managers that will have about N20bn invested in this country who took those decisions based on the fact that the CBN is independent,” he added.
Copyright PUNCH.
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