Witness: Emefiele breached CBN Act in Naira redesign

Nkereuwem Effiong

The seventh prosecution witness, Chinedu Eneanya, on Wednesday told Justice Maryanne Anineh of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Maitama, Abuja, that former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Ifeanyi Emefiele, violated provisions of the CBN Act during the 2022 naira redesign exercise.

Emefiele is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a four-count charge bordering on the alleged unlawful printing of new naira notes.

Testifying under cross-examination by defence counsel, Olalekan Ojo, SAN, the witness stated that the investigation revealed that the defendant failed to comply with the provisions of the CBN Act, 2007.

“The Central Bank must obtain Board recommendations before a currency redesign,” he said.

Eneanya further disclosed that Emefiele presented three sample designs of the proposed naira notes in the N1,000, N500 and N200 denominations, which were subsequently approved by the President.

“The President approved on page 11 and directed that the design be done locally. However, our investigation showed that what was eventually produced differed from what was presented to the President,” he added.

According to the EFCC’s Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, the witness also revealed that the original design of the old naira notes was handled by De La Rue, a United Kingdom-based company.

On whether the EFCC invited members of the CBN Board of Directors or its Committee of Governors during the investigation, Eneanya stated that the Commission obtained a statement from the official in charge of the apex bank’s Corporate Secretariat.

Earlier in the proceedings, the witness identified Exhibit N1 as the statement made by Ahmed Aliyu, Managing Director of the Nigeria Security Printing and Minting Company Limited (NSPMC).

When asked whether his investigation uncovered any contradictions on page six of Exhibit N1, the witness maintained that the printing of the naira notes had already been carried out locally before the investigation commenced. He also confirmed that the CBN paid NSPMC for the production of the currency.

Under re-examination, prosecution counsel Abbas Mohammed sought clarification on whether the President’s directive related to the design or production of the currency. The witness responded that the redesigned naira notes were presented to President Muhammadu Buhari for approval.

“Investigations show that the design of the currency was presented to the President and approved,” he said.

Justice Anineh subsequently adjourned the case until 11 May 2026 for continuation of the trial.