The member representing Isoko federal constituency in the Federal House Of Representatives and Minority Leader of the green chamber, Mr. Leo Ogor, has disagreed with the call by the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, to cut the powers of the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Ogor, who made his point known during interaction with news men in Abuja over the weekend made it clear that such plans must be disregarded because it amounts to eroding the independence of the apex bank.
According to the federal lawmaker, rather than whittling down the powers of central bank which is not in conformity with international best practices as present day realities as demonstrated world wide, the finance minister should initiate relevant fiscal policies aimed at stimulating the economy from recession.
His words: “If the minister succeeds with her plan, the reaction time of the CBN to monetary policies will be greatly impaired by bureaucracy as it is expected to act through a supervisory agency and such move will result in undue political interference in monetary policies, which will not augur well for the economy.” adding that rather than asking for cuts, the minister should have sought to strengthen the CBN’s powers.
HardReporters national assembly correspondent reports that Ogor, who was particularly worried about the adverse impact the whittling down the powers of the CBN would have on the larger economy by further subjecting the bank to the ministry’s supervision, stressed emphatically that “The central bank should remain independent and not be brought under the Ministry of Finance. The CBN should not be seen as an appendage of the finance ministry.”
Ogor, however opined that reinforcing the CBN’s autonomy as a global practice should be encouraged while the relationship between it and the ministry should be the coordination of monetary and fiscal policies even as he noted further that “To say that the governor and the central bank should be under the control of the executive would mean that any decision that is made by the CBN will be subjected to political influence. So, the place of the central bank is sacrosanct.”
The vibrant federal lawmaker strictly admonished that, such an idea should be discarded immediately as it is not in consonance with global best practices.
