$43m Haul: CBN Distances Self, Says It Doesn’t Deal Directly With Individuals
CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele[/caption]
The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, has rejected suggestions that the N13 billion recovered from a luxury apartment at Ikoyi was moved directly from the bank to the National Intelligence Agency, NIA.
The apex bank in a statement by its spokesman, Isaac Okoroafor, noted that the CBN deals directly with banks and not government agencies or individuals.
Recall that operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) uncovered the total of the $42 million, £27,000 and N23 million from an apartment at Osborne Road, Ikoyi, Lagos.
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“It is true the Central Bank of Nigeria issues mint-fresh notes, but it is only to banks. After that (issuance to banks), CBN does not know which of their customers they (the banks) give those notes to and for what purpose,” Okoroafor told the PremiumTimes.
“I cannot say if the notes the NIA is claiming came from the CBN. So, I will not be able to answer questions on it for now, except I receive a specific request.”
Asked to clarify the CBN’s role in the disbursement of the funds, spokesman of the bank, Isaac Okorafor, told online portal, Premium Times, that the apex bank deals directly with banks and not government agencies or individuals.
The CBN’s reaction came against the backdrop of reports that the NIA claimed that it got the money from the CBN.
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Meanwhile, as controversies continue to trail the $43 million cash stashed in an Ikoyi Apartment in Lagos, the Federal Government has maintained mutism on the matter.
Recall that Rotimi Amaechi has been at the center of several allegations which suggests that the Transport Minister may have piled the said cash in the penthouse.
