Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Lamido Sanusi,
indications have emerged that President Goodluck Jonathan is looking
towards the South-West for the plum job.
Sanusi's five-year single term tenure expires in June and he has
consistently said he will not seek a second term in office.
Among those reportedly vying for the position of the CBN governor are
the Managing Director, Access Bank Plc, Mr. Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede;
Managing Director, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Mr. Bisi Onasanya;
and Managing Director, Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria, Mr.
Mustapha Chike-Obi.
Others are the four Deputy Governors, Mr. Tunde Lemo (Operations); Dr.
Kingsley Moghalu (Financial System Stability); Dr. Sarah Alade
(Economic Policy); and Alhaji Suleiman Barau (Corporate Services
Directorate); as well as the Minister of Industry, Trade and
Investment, Mr. Olusegun Aganga; and the Minister of State for
Finance, Dr. Yerima Ngama.
Out of the lot, Onasanya, Alade and Lemo are from the South-West
region, while Aganga is representing Lagos State in the federal
cabinet, though originally from Edo State in the South-South region.
A source told one of our correspondents in Abuja on Sunday that
although the President had not picked any candidate for the post, he
was keen on fulfilling a promise he made to some Yoruba leaders a few
months ago.
The South-West leaders had during a visit to the President complained
about the alleged marginalisation of the zone, especially in the area
of political appointments under Jonathan's administration.
The source said the President promised to reserve some key political
appointments for the region in order to redress the perceived
imbalance against the South-West in political appointments by the
administration.
The Yoruba are disenchanted with the loss of the position of the
Speaker of the House of Representatives to the North-West, among
others.
It was learnt that the recurring complaints of the region were
responsible for the long delay in the appointment of a substantive
Minister of Defence, which saw a former Deputy Governor of Osun State,
Mrs. Olusola Obada, as the acting minister for two years after the
then substantive minister, Haliru Mohammed, was fired by the
President.
The source also said those claiming that the President was planning to
give the job of the CBN governor to somebody from the South-South were
wrong.
The source said that it would amount to an error of judgment for the
President to give the positions of the Executive Chairman of the
Federal Inland Revenue Service and the CBN governor to the same zone.
The President had last year forwarded the name of Mfon Akpan to the
Senate for confirmation as the FIRS chairman.
The source explained further that the CBN job could only go to another
zone if serious changes were made in the cabinet of the President.
Meanwhile, analysts have called on Jonathan to quickly name a
successor to Sanusi because speculations surrounding his replacement
may have negative impact on the economy.
They advised the President to appoint an economist rather than a core
banker as Sanusi's successor, noting that the country needed a CBN
governor who would focus more on economic rather than banking issues.
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