By hannover-web.com In the ongoing trial of former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Godwin Emefiele, Edward Adamu, a witness for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), provided insight into the alleged failure to follow due process in the currency redesigns initiated in 2022. Adamu, who retired last September from his role as Deputy Governor of Corporate Services, stressed that his extensive knowledge of CBN’s policies and operations comes from his years of service and his role as a member of the Committee of Governors (CoG).
During his testimony, Adamu outlined his various responsibilities, which included overseeing departments such as security, legal services, medical services, finance, human resources, procurement, capacity development, and corporate communication. He clarified that the CoG, functioning as a management committee, had the mandate to review and either approve or recommend matters to the Board of Directors (BoD) for approval.
“The Board of Directors is the highest decision-making body at the CBN, tasked with approving bank policies and budgets,” Adamu stated. As the fourth prosecution witness, he criticized the process behind the redesign of the N1,000, N500, and N200 notes, aligning his concerns with previous witnesses who highlighted that the redesign was communicated to the CoG only after it had received approval from then-President Muhammadu Buhari.
Adamu explained that currency redesign involves changing the images or introducing new denominations and should originate from the currency operations department, following a thorough recommendation process culminating in presidential approval. However, he noted that this standard procedure was not adhered to, as he was only informed of the redesign in October 2022, when the governor briefed the CoG about the presidential approval.
“On October 26, 2022, during a CoG meeting, we were officially informed that presidential approval had been secured. The governor presented us with a document showing the president’s authorization for the redesign. Subsequently, the board was also informed of this approval,” he recounted.
He identified exhibit E2 as the documentation presented during the CoG meeting and asserted that no recommendations had been made to the board prior to the president’s approval. When shown comparisons between the approved notes and what was eventually issued by the CBN, he remarked on a “slight difference,” noting that the CoG meeting occurred on October 7, but the presidential approval was documented as having been granted on October 6.
Under cross-examination from Emefiele’s attorney, Olalekan Ojo, SAN, Adamu acknowledged that there had been instances where compliance with presidential approval occurred prior to notifying the BoD and CoG. The trial is scheduled to continue on October 17.
