Buhari meets Emefiele amid confusion over fate, Naira re-design deadline
Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele has met with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa.
The meeting which held on Thursday afternoon came amid the prevailing confusion over the fate of Emefiele in office after he suddenly travelled out of the country and his alleged return two days ago shrouded in secrecy.
Before his alleged return, officers of the Department of State Services (DSS) had thronged his Abuja residence seeking to arrest him for alleged financial misdeeds.
His office in Abuja was also allegedly raided by the DSS.
The DSS men were also said to be waiting at the airport to pick him up on his arrival.
But there were unconfirmed reports that his arrival was cushioned by men of the Air Force who quickly ferried him out of the airport to evade DSS arrest.
Some presidency officials had been miffed by Emefiele’s travel in the middle of some unfinished and unresolved issues.
One is on the quality of the new Naira notes meant to replace the old notes. Some reckon that the new notes are below standard and of low quality.
The other is the confusion trailing the January 31st deadline for the withdrawal of the old notes from circulation.
This confusion followed widespread complaints even from bankers that the new notes are unavailable.
Emefiele has been in the news after he announced the redesign of the N1000, N500 and N200 notes and a deadline of January 31 set for the withdrawal of the old notes in circulation.
While Minister of Finance Zainab Ahmed claimed she was not carried along in the redesigning of the naira, President Buhari came out to back the CBN governor, launching the new naira notes.
The DSS have also been on the tail of the CBN governor, approaching the Federal High Court in Abuja for an order to arrest Emefiele who was then on leave abroad over links with terrorism.
A source close to the Presidency, informed WesternPost that the meeting with President Buhari might not be unconnected with the recent moves by the DSS to have him arrested.
More details later…
