The Northern Elders Forum (NEF) has expressed deep concern about the reported plans by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to relocate major departments from the Abuja headquarters to the former headquarters in Lagos.
It expressed its opposition to the move which, it alleges, would widen economic disparity between Northern and Southern Nigeria.
NEF, in a statement by its director of publicity and advocacy, Abdul-Azeez Suleiman, said the organisation recognises the importance of the departments in question, including Banking Supervision, DBS; Other Financial Institutions Supervision, OFISD; Consumer Protection Department (CPD); Payment System Management Department (PSMD) and Financial Policy Regulations Department (FPRD), as vital components of the CBN.
He said as stated in the BOFIA Act (Banking and Other Financial Institutions Act), the affected departments are crucial to the functioning of the CBN and, therefore, relocating them to Lagos will only serve to further strengthen the already dominant position of Lagos, while potentially weakening the significance and role of Abuja.
He said while the NEF acknowledges the CBN’s desire to improve efficiency and effectiveness, it is worried about the potential negative impact of relocating these essential departments on both the institution itself and the nation as a whole.
He noted that the movement would involve increased costs, loss of talent, disruption in operations, reduced coordination, regional economic disparities, impaired economic development in northern Nigeria, and decreased investor confidence in the nation’s economy.