Senate Considers Bill to Remove CBN Governor as Chairman of the Board

A bill that seeks to remove the governor of Nigeria's apex bank, CBN, as chairman of its board has passed second reading in the Senate.

The bill, sponsored by Sadiq Suleiman Umar (APC, Kwara North), seeks to amend the CBN Act to allow the appointment of someone other than the governor as chairman of its board.< /p>

The bill would also deprive the board of directors of the power to determine and set the salaries and allowances of its members and to review and approve the bank's annual budget.

The CBN Act No. 7 of 2007 currently allows any sitting governor of the bank to also serve as chairman of its board of directors.

The passage of the bill followed a debate over the provisions of the legislation and attempts by some senators to "kill" the bill.

The proposed bill comes months after political parties held presidential primaries and elected presidential candidates.

Ahead of the May and June primaries, CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele was branded a contender for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential ticket, an aspiration he did not denied.

The law project

Leading the debate, Mr Umar said the bill proposes that the new chairman of the board of directors of the Central Bank should have the power to determine the salaries and allowances of members, with the governor focusing strictly on administrative tasks in the management of the apex bank. .

The board, he explained, would be responsible for the annual budget of the bankers' bank which he said is the global standard.

"He's looking to get rid of the governor of CBN, the chair of the board like you can get in other countries around the world," he explained. "Another person with the required qualifications and knowledge of monetary and financial policies should be appointed chairman of the board of directors."

He said the separation of the two positions will allow any incumbent CBN governor to focus more on fiscal and monetary policies than on the politics of the institution.

Deliberations

In her contribution, Betty Apiafi (PDP Rivers) suggested a comprehensive change to CBN law by recalling how current CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele tried to run for president while in office. function in the 2022 presidential primary election – an act, she said, “would not happen anywhere in the world”, particularly because the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) election materials are generally kept in the bank.

Having tried to run for president, Mr Emefiele has caused many Nigerians to lose faith in the bank for not tempering himself with sensitive election material, she said.

READ ALSO: Why I didn't fire Emefiele for alleged political ambition - Buhari

At this point, Senate President Ahmad Lawan, who was chairing the plenum, warned his colleagues against linking the bill and the debate to Mr. Emefiele's presidential candidacy.

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"That has nothing to do with what we are discussing here."

Senators Enyinnaya Abaribe (APGA, Abia South), James Manager (PDP, Delta South), Orji Kalu (APC, Abia North) and Senate Deputy Speaker Ovie Omo-Agege opposed the proposed law.

They argued that more work needed to be done.

Mr. Omo-Agege said in particular that the attention of the chairman of the Senate Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions Committee, Uba Sani, was required. Mr. Sani was absent at the time.

For a while, there were arguments about whether to withdraw the bill or put it to a voice vote. While some senators wanted the bill passed, others opposed it.

Mr. Lawan, however, put the bill to a voice vote for second reading and the majority voted in favor of the bill.

The bill has been referred to the Banking Committee for further legislative work and will report to the Senate in four weeks.

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