The former acting Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Folashodun Shonubi, has testified in the trial of Godwin Emefiele at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Shonubi in his testimony stated that the naira redesign policy did not follow standard procedure and that there were politics and intrigues surrounding the 2022 redesign policy.
According to Shonubi, the redesigned naira notes produced by the CBN under Emefiele were not the same as those approved by ex-President Muhammadu Buhari.
He mentioned that the memo presented to the president for the redesign was solely prepared by Emefiele, bypassing the usual procedure.
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Shonubi explained that the normal procedure for currency redesign involved the Currency Management Department recommending a redesign, followed by a submission to the Committee of Governors (COG) for consideration.
Upon the COG’s approval, the CBN Board would recommend it to the President.
However, Shonubi claimed that Emefiele did not follow this procedure and bypassed the recommendation made by the Currency Department in early 2021.
During cross-examination, Shonubi testified that he was not aware of the discussions between Emefiele and the former president over the redesign policy.
Emefiele is facing a four-count charge of illegal acts causing public injury, to which he has pleaded not guilty.
The trial is ongoing, and the next hearing is scheduled for next week on Tuesday.
