Former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Sanusi Lamido, has backed the relocation of some departments of the CBN from Abuja to Lagos.
Saunsi, in a statement on Thursday, described the move as “eminently sensible,” citing the larger infrastructure capacity in the Lagos office.
INFORMATION NIGERIA reports that the apex bank’s decision to relocate some of its departments from Abuja to Lagos had ignited controversies in the past weeks, particularly from the Northern political class.
They believed that such decision may lead to economic disparities between the North and South.
Sanusi said: “My advice to the governor is to go ahead with his policy. Once the CBN starts bending to political pressure on one thing, it will continue doing so.
“Northern politicians will shout that this is moving from Abuja to Lagos. Abuja is a federal capital, not a northern issue. So long as this is a principled decision the noise should be ignored.
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“When I was about to get my license at Jaiz Bank there was a lot of religious noise from CAN, etc. Even enlightened people like Okey Emelamah were going to sue me in court on religious grounds. I ignored it and licensed the bank. Nothing happened.
“No one is even noticing again. Ethnic and religious bigots will always shout. The CBN should rise above it and just do what needs to be done. It is a very unpopular and difficult job and the Governor needs to be tough.
“In my mind, what I would have done was to move FSS and most operations to Lagos such that the two Deputy Governors would be largely operating out of Lagos or, even if they were more in Abuja, the bulk of their operational staff would be in Lagos.
“Economic policy, Corporate services, and all the departments reporting to the governor directly such as strategy, audit, risk management, governors’ office, etc., would remain in Abuja.
“It makes eminent strategic sense. And I would have done this if I had stayed.”
