The former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi , SLS, recently disclosed details of the CBN’s proposed departmental relocation strategy and shared his opinions on the relocation of specific duties.
Sanusi disproved previous allegations, claiming he was not in charge of the previous building’s demolition. “I did not demolish the old building. The credit for the design and the contract for the new Lagos building goes to Charles Soludo. But I indeed did the formal foundation laying ceremony when Julius Berger brought the building to ground level, and I opened the building then used it before I left the CBN”.
Acknowledging talks among governors proposing the relocation of the Directorate of Financial System Stability, DG FSS, and its agencies to Lagos, he said “There was no “blueprint“. Yakasai may have been informed by someone of conversations among the governors , and he was not present in that conversation, in which we proposed that DG FSS and his departments move to Lagos and he could come to Abuja anytime for meetings. Kingsley Moghalu was happy with the arrangement but we did not have time to come round to it. Having said that- moving certain functions to the Lagos office, which is bigger than the Abuja head office, is an eminently sensible move.”
SLS suggested a scenario in which FSS and the majority of Operations might operate from Lagos, expressing permission for the relocation of functions to the larger Lagos office. He imagined that the two Deputy Governors would work mainly from Lagos, or that most of their operational personnel would be based there. On the other hand, important divisions like Corporate Services, Economic Policy, and those that directly answer to the Governor would continue to be located in Abuja.
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SLS highlighted the strategic justification for this action, claiming that cost savings and increased efficiency would result from simplifying operations in Lagos. He brushed off the criticism, pointing out that there are employees all across the country, and that it is a typical managerial duty to optimize operations.
SLS expressed worries, nevertheless, that some workers were putting their Abuja way of life and enterprises ahead of their CBN obligations. To ensure the bank’s continued stability, he implored the governor to take urgent action on this matter.
SLS also made recommendations to the CBN, advising it to take a strategic approach to departmental relocations, to take individual circumstances into consideration with empathy, and to stay focused on important economic metrics like inflation and the exchange rate to increase confidence.
In conclusion, he pleaded with the Governor to implement the program, ignoring political pressure, adding that choices ought to be based on principles rather than local factors. He emphasized, based on his experience, that difficult choices are frequently essential to an institution’s long-term viability and efficacy.
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