Naira Redesign Scam: Suspended CBN Governor Implicates Suspended EFCC Chairman
The suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, has named the suspended chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa, as a partner in the naira redesign scam that affected millions of Nigerians some months ago.
PRISTINEGIST learnt on Thursday that Emefiele, who is being held by the Department of State Services (DSS), was behind the invitation and detention of Bawa by the secret police on Wednesday night.
Bawa, who was suspended indefinitely by President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday over corruption allegations, was interrogated by the DSS operatives for several hours.
His invitation and detention came days after Emefiele was arrested and flown from Lagos to Abuja to face interrogation over alleged corruption and abuse of office.
We learnt that Emefiele and Bawa were being questioned on various issues including the naira redesign scam.
The scam involved the unveiling of new naira notes in denominations of N200, N500 and N1,000 by then-President Muhammadu Buhari and Emefiele on November 23, 2022.
Emefiele had insisted that the old notes would cease to be legal tender from January 31, 2023.
The policy led to a cash crisis and long queues at banks and ATMs as the CBN could not meet the demand for new notes.
According to a top source, Emefiele claimed that Bawa was the one who wrote a memo to Buhari, requesting for the naira redesign to curb money laundering during the 2023 election.
However, Bawa reportedly challenged him that he (Emefiele) and the former Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, were the ones who asked him to write the memo because they suspected Tinubu had warehouses stuffed with naira notes.
“Emefiele who is currently cooling his feet in the cell of the DSS is the reason why the EFCC chairman has been detained overnight.
Emefiele who is cooperating with the DSS claimed that Bawa was the one who wrote a memo to former President Muhammadu Buhari, requesting that the naira should be redesigned to curb money laundering during the 2023 election,” the source said.
“Bawa challenged him that he (Emefiele) and the former Attorney-General of the Federation, Malami were the ones who asked him to write the memo because they suspected Tinubu had warehouses stuffed with naira notes,” the source added.
