The Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) has told the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF) that there is no going back on the cash withdrawal limit guidelines regarding financial operations of the three tiers of government in Nigeria.
With the deadline on the use of old Naira notes drawing near, 36 State governors of the federation had on Thursday appealed to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, Godwin Emefiele, via the chairman of the NGF, Aminu Tambuwal, to consider the peculiarities of each States by delaying the cash withdrawal guidelines
However, NFIU revealed its stance on the meeting with the governors of the 36 states of the federation in a statement, on Saturday, signed by its spokesman, Ahmed Dikko.
Dikko said that it had given enough time for all entities in the country to withdraw cash above the approved daily limit and it was no longer in the interest of the country and its citizens to continue to indulge in such violation.
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The statement said the director of the NFIU, Modibbo Hamman Tukur, had said at the end of his meeting with the governors that the agency was ready to cooperate with and enlighten a six-man committee set up by the NGF.
“When approached by newsmen to respond to statement issued by the Chairman of Nigerian Governors’ Forum regarding the guidelines on cash withdrawals from all government accounts, the Director, Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, Modibbo Hamman Tukur said they were ready to partner with the six-man committee they set up. We will enlighten them.
“Secondly we acted within our functions and the law. We issued the guidelines to control the barrage of investigations that we saw coming. Our guidelines are meant to help the governors not to fight them or any public servant.
“We reached a stage that if we allow the present scenario to continue, all public institutions will drift into STRUCTURED CASH WITHDRAWALS of certain amounts of money which by law, standards and best practices MUST be investigated continuously which is neither desirable nor reasonable.
“We feel communities must move on by accommodating changes and adjusting to new developments.”
