The embattled Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, has allayed concerns over his departure, informing his staff that he will remain in office till June 1 when his tenure as governor expires.
Sanusi, THISDAY reliably gathered, met with the staff of the central bank Wednesday to inform them that his earlier decision to go on terminal leave in March had been rescinded and that he was prepared to stay out his tenure.
Sanusi’s meeting with his staff took place a day after President Goodluck Jonathan had asked him to resign on the grounds that he leaked the letter that he had written to the president on the unremitted $49.8 billion oil revenue to former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
But Sanusi immediately denied the allegation and refused to step down, reminding the president that he could only be removed by two-thirds of the Senate.
However, owing to the impact on the financial markets and the macroeconomy, well-meaning Nigerians who were also concerned that Sanusi's forced departure could send the wrong signals to the international investment community, moved promptly to appeal to the president to rethink his demand that the CBN governor should resign.
Their intervention, THISDAY learnt, was able to lead to a rapproachment, during which Sanusi affirmed his respect for the Office of the President and the president, as well as his desire to continue to work in the interest of the federal government until he steps down on June 1.
With the resolution of the matter, a source in the presidency said that an orderly transition would commence on March 1, paving the way for the appointment of a new CBN governor who would take over from Sanusi.
During the meeting with the CBN personnel, Sanusi made it official that he was no longer going on terminal leave and would remain in office till June 1.
He was also quoted as saying that it is only a two-thirds majority vote in the Senate that can unseat him.
Sanusi's position is supported by the CBN Act, which stipulates how an incumbent governor can be removed from office.
Section 11(2)(f) of the Act states: “A person shall not remain a Governor, Deputy Governor or Director of the Bank if he is removed by the President: Provided that the removal of the Governor shall be supported by two-thirds majority of the Senate praying that he be so removed.”
Expectedly, the face-off between the president and Sanusi, which was exclusively reported by THISDAY yesterday, elicited mixed reactions and disbelief among critical stakeholders in the financial system, the political establishment and lawyers.
Financial market experts who spoke to THISDAY on the development, however, expressed divergent views over the directive by Jonathan that Sanusi should immediately resign over the leaked letter to Obasanjo.
The reactions ranged from disbelief to muted concern for the financial markets and investors' reactions to sign of instability. Most respondents who spoke said the development was unnecessary since the governor is just months away from finishing his tenure.
