There are strong indications that some importers, particularly those involved in the importation of items tagged ‘not eligible for foreign exchange via the official window’ are planning to scuttle the confirmation Mr Godwin Emefiele as the Central Bank of Nigeria Governor for the second term by the National Assembly.
Speaking recently in Katsina during the launch of input distribution to cotton farmers for 2019 farming season, Emefiele reiterated that saboteurs would by blacklisted from assessing financial services from banks operating in the country.
Sources said the latest announcement on the renewal of Emefiele’s tenure by President Muhammadu Buhari may have come as a surprise to alleged saboteurs.
The sources said those caught in the web may have taken the gauntlet to take the fight to the door steps of the apex bank by deploying all ammunition in their arsenal to fight against the confirmation by the National Assembly.
Those in the rice and textile businesses in particular, who have been having sleepless nights over the nationalistic nature of Emefiele are believed to be mobilizing through various means to discredit him.
According to sources, they have resorted to either to use the courts to scuttle the confirmation process or other means like sponsoring protests, concoction of spurious messages and hacking into official conversations. Meanwhile, Emefiele is believed to remain undaunted as he vowed to fight smugglers using the powers enshrined in CBN Act 2007 and BOFIA to regulate the financial system and the economy at large toward higher productivity, employment generation, wealth creation and self-reliance in the nearest future.
