SERAP Gives CBN 7 Days to Account for Alleged Missing N100bn Dirty Notes, Other Public Funds

Chuks Okocha in Abuja

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) yesterday urged the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Olayemi Cardoso, to account for the N100 billion dirty and bad notes and other large sums of cash awaiting examination which are kept in various branches of the apex bank..
SERAP, which made the call through a statement issued by its Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, said the allegations were documented in the latest annual report recently published by the Auditor-General of the Federation.

SERAP also urged him to explain the whereabouts of the alleged N7.2 billion budgeted for the construction of the CBN Dutse branch in 2010 and the N4.8 billion budgeted for the renovation of the CBN Abeokuta branch in 2009, and to publish the names of the contractors who collected the money but failed to complete the projects.
SERAP urged him to explain the whereabouts of the alleged missing outstanding loan of N1.2 billion granted to the Enugu state government in 2015 and the outstanding loan of N1.9 billion granted to the Anambra state government between 2015 and 2016 and to fully recover and remit the public funds to the treasury.

“These grim allegations by the Auditor-General suggest grave violations of the public trust, the provisions of the Nigerian Constitution, the CBN Act, and national and international anticorruption obligations.”
“These grave violations also reflect a failure of CBN accountability more generally and are directly linked to the institution’s persistent failure to comply with its Act and to uphold the principles of transparency and accountability,.”

According to SERAP, the alleged violations have seriously undermined the ability of the CBN to effectively discharge its statutory functions and the public trust and confidence in the bank stressing that the CBN ought to be committed to transparency and accountability in its operations.”
Part of  the letter read: “Explaining the whereabouts of the missing public funds, publishing the names of those suspected to be responsible and ensuring that they are brought to justice and the full recovery of any missing public funds would serve the public interest and end the impunity of perpetrators.

“According to the recently published 2020 audited report by the Auditor General of the Federation (AGF), the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has since 2017 been keeping over N100 billion  ‘dirty and bad notes’, and other large sum of cash awaiting examination in various branches of the CBN.”
“The Auditor-General fears that the ‘dirty and bad notes’ initially planned to be destroyed may have been ‘be diverted and re-injected into the economy.
“The CBN in August 2010 also reportedly budgeted N7.2 billion (N7,286,500,476.76) for the construction of Dutse branch building. The Dutse branch was due to be completed in November 2012 , but the contractors have failed to complete the project,” it stated.

It said in The CBN in 2009 reportedly budgeted N4.8 billion [N4,812,608,028.10] for the renovation of the CBN Abeokuta branch while the Abeokuta branch was due to be completed in 2012 but the contractors had failed to complete the project.
“The CBN also reportedly failed to account for the missing outstanding loan of N1.2 billion [N1,294,453,887.83] granted to the Enugu state government in 2015 and the outstanding loan of N1.9 billion (N1,994,383,561.64) granted to the Anambra state government between 2015 and 2016,” it added,