BY: News Peddlers
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| Agents from the State Security Service and Godwin Emefiele |
People familiar with the decision said that Governor Godwin Emefiele of the Central Bank of Nigeria has concluded plans to seek refugee status in the United Kingdom due to developing threats to his position and personal safety from the State Security Service.
"Because it now appears impossible for him to return to Nigeria, the next step is to seek asylum in the UK, a source told The Gazette on condition of anonymity. The United Kingdom is his first choice for asylum, but he has not ruled out the United States."
Mr Emefiele left London on December 26 for the United States, where he remained as of Friday, according to Peoples Gazette.
It was unclear when he intended to return to the UK, but his strong family ties to the country were said to be the driving force behind his decision to seek asylum there. He was concerned that if he delayed his asylum application, he would be declared wanted by the SSS and subjected to extradition requests to his shelter countries.
According to Peoples Gazette, the ongoing threats against Mr Emefiele are the most potent he has faced as CBN governor. He returned to work in June 2014.
Mr Emefiele has been weighing his options from abroad, where he has been forced to remain amid raging intrigues to implicate him as a terrorist financier, Peoples Gazette has learned. According to people familiar with his schedules, the CBN governor left Nigeria between December 9 and 10, and appeared with President Muhammadu Buhari during a publicised Washington trip that ended on December 17.
According to an internal conversation obtained by Peoples Gazette prior to the trip, Mr Emefiele received presidential approval to go on holiday until January 9, 2023. According to our sources, that date is now regarded as the most critical for the CBN governor and even the president himself.
"The period from January 9 to 10 will be critical for everyone involved in this matter," another source familiar with the situation said. "It is the date by which the governor must be at his desk; it is the date by which the president must make a decision if the governor fails to appear at the office."
"That's why I said it's a big day for both the governor and the president," the source explained.
Nonetheless, Mr Emefiele maintains that only the president has the power to make all threats disappear overnight.
"The governor is certain that only the president can call everyone involved in this senseless assault to account," the second source added.
While Mr Emefiele would be willing to return to Nigeria if the president could guarantee him protection from state goons at the SSS, only one method of such guarantees can provide the CBN chief with complete security.
"The president must intervene, and he must intervene publicly," he says. "Only by publicly intervening can the governor be assured of his safety and economic stability restored."
"Even if the SSS DG calls the governor and assures him that he will not be arrested," the official said. "However, a public announcement by the SSS or, better yet, the president, that the governor will not be arrested, can be taken seriously."
A request for comment from the president's spokesman on whether or how Mr Emefiele could be assured of his safety in Nigeria was not returned. The SSS did not respond to requests for comment.
Mr Emefiele will rely on a December 13 court order that dismissed the SSS allegations and effectively declared him a victim of a sham, Peoples Gazette has learned.
"It is my respectful opinion that the applicant's ipse dixit, standing alone, is not sufficient evidence upon which to deprive a person of his liberty," Justice John Tsoho of the Federal High Court's Abuja Division wrote in his decision. The SSS brought the allegations in order to obtain an ex-parte warrant against Mr Emefiele, which is a judicial process that allows a judge to grant an order after hearing from only one party. It is typically only temporary.
"The court only heard the SSS version of the allegations and dismissed everything as lacking any shred of evidence," a second source said. "Imagine what would happen if the governor was given the opportunity to present his own case."
Prior to the recent crises that have weakened the capital markets, Mr Emefiele had long been regarded as a powerful figure in the current administration. According to officials, he has assisted the government in managing prolonged financial distress and preventing a complete collapse of the nation's economy.
However, his recent decisions to redesign the national currency and significantly limit cash withdrawals can be traced back to his open participation in partisan politics, in violation of existing federal regulations.
He made moves to run for president earlier this year, but backed down after the president ordered all federal officials with political ambitions to resign.
Politicians across the country were said to be stockpiling cash to use as voter incentives. However, with Mr Emefiele's decision to phase out major currencies in circulation by January 31, 2023, politicians will find it more difficult to bribe voters at the polls.
Mr Emefiele was widely chastised when he implemented the policy in October, and he followed it up with another contentious measure that sought to limit Nigerians' cash withdrawals to N100,000 per week.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) claimed that more than 80% of the country's currency in circulation could not be traced, but critics said the move was an attempt to steal public funds through contract awards for printing new notes.
Mr Emefiele denied the allegations, claiming that monitoring currency in circulation and limiting cash withdrawals would benefit the country's economy because most transactions would take place through electronic channels, making them traceable and taxable.
Peoples Gazette