The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has brought forth new charges against the former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, according to court documents filed at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory.
The EFCC alleges that Emefiele approved the printing of N684.5 million, amounting to N18.9 billion.
In the charge sheets obtained by PUNCH Online, the EFCC claims that Emefiele violated the law with the intention of causing harm to the public during the implementation of the naira swap policy under the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari. Additionally, Emefiele is accused of unlawfully authorizing the withdrawal of N124.8 billion from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation.
The document, dated April 2, 2024, and marked Suit No: CR/264/2024, was filed by the EFCC’s lead prosecutor, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN. Emefiele is expected to be arraigned on a new four-count charge before Justice Hamza Muazu. The charges include allegations of disobeying the law to the detriment of Nigerians, illegal printing of money, and abuse of office, among others.
Specifically, counts one to four of the charge state that Emefiele knowingly disobeyed the direction of the CBN Act, 2007, by approving the printing of substantial quantities of color-swapped Naira notes without the necessary recommendation of the Central Bank’s Board and the strict approval of the President of Nigeria. The EFCC argues that Emefiele’s actions caused injury to the public and consequently committed offenses.
It should be noted that Emefiele was previously arraigned on November 18, 2023, on six counts of procurement fraud, making this the most prominent corruption case during President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s tenure. Among the allegations, Emefiele was accused of abusing his office by approving a contract for the acquisition of 43 vehicles worth N1.2 billion between 2018 and 2020.
Furthermore, on April 8, 2024, the EFCC arraigned Emefiele and Henry Omoile before Justice R.A. Oshodi of the Special Offences Court in Ikeja, Lagos. The charges pertained to an alleged fraud involving $4.5 billion and N2.8 billion.
