The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has strongly discounted media reports alleging money was missing or stolen from its coffers, saying there is no money missing or stolen from the bank. Isaac Okoroafor, CBN Director of Corporate Communications, refuted the allegations in a statement on Sunday while reacting to a spate of reports and audio clips circulating on social media and other online platforms in which the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele and other senior officials were heard discussing discrepancies in the bank’s accounts.
Okoroafor said the audio was distorted in a manner which creates a different impression of the issues being discussed, which was to proffer solutions to a misunderstanding that affected the Bank’s balance sheet. “The selective conversation being circulated was simply a discussion to ascertain why the auditors took that position and next steps to resolving it,” the statement noted.
The apex bank said it was making the clarification against the headline-grabbing narrative that the discussion was about a fraudulent transaction, stating that the conversation was simply to proffer solutions to a misunderstanding that affected the institution’s balance sheet. Explaining the development, the apex bank said the external auditors in their Draft Account of CBN’s 2018 financials, erroneously classified about N150 billion of the Conditional Budget Support to states as bad, which negatively affected its balance sheet and shareholders’ fund.
In the statement, the apex bank stated: “As publicly known the CBN was approached in 2015 by the National Economic Management Team and the National Economic Council chaired by the Vice President, to assist State Governments with Conditional Budget Support. This happened in the aftermath of the significant nose-dive in global oil prices and associated FAAC allocations.
“In order to ensure that ordinary Nigerian workers got their salaries, pensions and gratuities, and that the economy continued to recover from recession, the Bank provided about N650 billion in loans at 9 per cent with a two-year grace period to 35 States of the Federation. These monies were distributed to the states monthly with documented approval of the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Presidency.
“In closing the Bank’s 2018 accounts, external auditors in their Draft Account, erroneously classified about N150 billion of these loans as bad, which negatively affected the Bank’s Balance Sheet and shareholders fund. Obviously, it soon became clear that a State Government loan cannot be classified as “bad” or “irrecoverable” when the State still exists and getting FAAC allocations.
“The Bank then reached out to the Federal Ministry of Finance and they jointly gave comfort to the auditors who accepted in writing that these monies would be repaid. On this basis, the auditors reversed the negative entry and the certified that the CBN’s 2018 accounts were a true reflection of the State of Affairs,” he said.
Okoroafor urged Nigerians to disregard the audio and continue to trust that the Bank is doing everything it could to represent their interests in the best possible way. “Under the leadership of Governor Emefiele, the CBN has always stood for, and vigorously pursued transparency in its stewardship of public resources and policies. The integrity of the CBN Governor remains unassailable. He has no account in Dubai or anywhere in the world and would never convert the funds of CBN for personal use. Not in the past, not now and not ever. The use of selective wiretapped conversations of the Bank’s Management, to malign his character and integrity will never stand. The Bank will pursue every legal means to bring the perpetrators to justice,” he said.
