Emir Sanusi: Intrigues, power-play that led to ouster as CBN Governor in 2013, Kano monarch in 2020
For the first time since he was suspended from office as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor in February 2014 by President Goodluck Jonathan and removed as Emir of Kano in March 2020, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi II has given detailed explanations of the intrigues and power play that led to his ouster from the two privileged positions.
The details are contained in a book, titled ‘Public Policy and Agent Interests: Perspectives from the Emerging World’, co-authored and edited by Dr. Shamsuddeen Usman, a former Minister of Finance under the administrations of Presidents Musa Yar’Adua and Jonathan.
It would be publicly launched on Thursday, September 26 in Abuja.
Incidentally, the Chairman of the event is Jonathan.
It would be interesting to witness the meeting of the two men, 10 years after.
Sanusi also gives details of the billions of dollars that he claimed went missing from the government coffers; how he confronted Jonathan in his office; what Jonathan asked him to do as a condition to prevent his suspension, why he did not accede to the demands and how the government of Niger Republic offered him asylum after his removal.
It is a chilling account of a man who had seen it all and was courageous enough to speak his mind.
In the book, Sanusi also narrates the details of his dethronement as the Emir of Kano, his battles with the Kano State government and how he refused to pander to the wishes of politicians.
Incidentally, the former Governor of Kano, Abdullahi Ganduje, who removed Sanusi as Emir is also expected to attend the book launch.
Examination of banks
For the first time also, Sanusi gives full accounts of the CBN’s examination of banks in 2009 and 2010; the fate of Intercontinental Bank and its former executives and the pressure he faced from many quarters on the matter.
The book is set in the context of principal-agent interest in Nigeria and country’s corrupt rentier economy.
The book is a unique publication on both the impetus for, and impediments to growth and development in emerging economies.
Workings of government
It provides a fascinating and penetrating insight into the workings of government and the boardroom, in terms of policy formulation and implementation, economic management as well as the overall growth paradigm in the developing world, with Nigeria as a case study.
It is also an account of the interactions between the government, its agencies and the private sector and how such engagements impact national growth, investments and the overall performance of the economy.
This publication is a veritable reference material on the subject matter for university libraries, policymakers, technocrats, business leaders and public officials on the workings of government and governance and the tradeoffs they have to make in designing and implementing public policy.. Sanusi is one of the 13 contributors to the book and they are all experts in their own fields, carefully selected, based on their impressive records in the public and private sectors, to share their experiences in key areas of policy making and development. Their unique contributions helped to broaden the book’s scope and impact, and give it its unique character and flavour.
The book’s main contributor and editor, Usman, was Sanusi’s economics lecturer in his final year at ABU, Zaria, in 1981.
After that Usman occupied many positions in the public and private sectors, including, Minister of National Planning (2009-201); Minister of Finance (2007-2009); Deputy Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (1999 – 2007) and Managing Director, NAL Merchant Bank (now Sterling Bank) (1995 – 1999). Usman has also served as an Executive Director at United Bank for Africa (UBA) and Union Bank of Nigeria, and the pioneer DG of TCPC (now BPE).
He is a former President and a Fellow of the Nigerian Economic Society.
He is also a Fellow of the Society for Corporate Governance Nigeria and of the Chartered Institute of Bankers.
He will be 75 on September 18, a little over a week to the launch event.
So, it is safe to say that the launch event is scheduled to celebrate this landmark birthday.
‘Why Nigeria’s revenue profile is dismal’
Meanwhile, a former deputy governor of the CBN, Dr Sarah Alade, has blamed the nation’s weak fiscal regime on the incompetence and recklessness of the political class and its unwillingness to be accountable for its conduct.
She notes that the overbearing and corrupt influence of the political class is responsible for the absence or weakness of such vital institutions as the Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC) and this explains why Nigeria continues to face dismal fiscal prospects.
Alade slams the abuse of the ‘Ways and Means’ by the last administration and explains how it aggravated the problem of long-term debt sustainability.
It is a captivating and engaging analysis of Nigeria’s financial landscape and the role of the political actors in undermining its growth potential.
Alade’s scholarly exposition constitutes a chapter in ‘Public Policy and Agent Interests: Perspectives from the Emerging World’.
She discusses Nigeria’s fiscal challenges, proposing strategic solutions such as technological integration and enhanced institutional transparency to improve fiscal governance and curb the agency problem
