Majority of observers or followers of the Nigerian banking industry would agree that Tony Elumelu of UBA and Jim Ovia of Zenith are the worst enemies of banking in the country. Cecilia Ibur of Oceanic bank is the last member of this triumvirate but she currently cooling her heels in EFCC custody.
Majority of observers or followers of the Nigerian banking industry would agree that Tony Elumelu of UBA and Jim Ovia of Zenith are the worst enemies of banking in the country. Cecilia Ibur of Oceanic bank is the last member of this triumvirate but she currently cooling her heels in EFCC custody.
The evidence in support of my position regarding these individuals can be found in fines imposed by United States regulators, arrest of Jim Ovia, the lifestyles of these individuals and many more. As the head of UBA and Zenith respectively, these individuals did everything but banking.
The ongoing revelations in the Nigerian banking industry did not come to me as surprise. When immediately after Chukwuma Saludo was appointed the head of CBN and Nigerian banks raised the sum of N50 million to host a dinner for him and he accepted, I knew there was going to be trouble with Nigerian banks. I remember asking someone I know who attended the dinner if they were served human parts because of the cost. He just laughed. I knew long ago and wrote extensively about the charade called banking in Nigeria. In 2008, our group demonstrated against Zenith and GTD branches in London, England to highlight the dangers these banks posed to the Nigerian economy. See the link below for more information on the demonstrations:
http://www.changenigeriamovement.blogspot.com/
During and after the demonstrations mentioned, many myopic Nigerians called us unpatriotic for wanting to destroy the “only productive employer of labor” in Nigeria. Our reply was that the banks were doing more damage to the Nigerian economy when compared to the jobs they were creating. As many before ours, our arguments fell on deaf ears because too many of us are afraid to engage holistic examination of issues. Our ultimate target at that time was to shut down the UBA office in New York with demonstrations. The plan did not go ahead for reasons that are beyond the scope of this article. However, many of the banks were worried enough to offer us bribes to avoid their banks and the offers were rejected It was during one of these demonstrations that a British employee of GTB in London who felt we were unfairly targeting GTB challenged us to take on UBA “the grandfather of money laundering in the Nigerian banking system” In support of her position, she referred to the $15 million fine imposed on UBA by United States bank regulators. I must state here that her reference to UBA was mere coincidence because we had already bestowed the title of chief money launderer on UBA before that incident.
Despite the hue and cry about the activities of these banks and the risk they posed to the Nigerian banking system and economy, former CBN chief, Chukwuma Saludo was too busy spending his share of the gains from shady bank deals and currency-round-tripping to care about the shenanigans of those whose conduct he was supposed to regulate. He was too busy buying multi-million houses in England and Nigeria to see the “tsunami” that was about to hit the banks. He could not see it because he was engrossed in it.
As the new head of the CBN, Mallam Lamido Sanusi has started a revolution. The question now is whether he will have the guts to pursue it to the end. By asking whether he will have the guts to see the revolution to the end, I mean whether he will have the intellectual and moral ability to apply objective parameters to his decision making process and ensure that all those who have re-invented the art of bank robbery in Nigeria are sent to their proper residence – Kirikiri prisons.
Since the launch of the “banking revolution” about two weeks ago, there have been different and sometime virulent opinions as to what Sanusi’s motivations maybe. The speculations have ranged from genuine to tribal/political. For me, I do not really care what his motivations are. The important point is that the people involved in this banking mess were actually involved in helping themselves to the tune of billions of naira belonging to depositors while living lavish lifestyles with the savings of Nigerians from all walks of life, including pure water hawkers and Okada operators. Ethnic background is not a valid defense to the allegations against these individuals.
Despite being old enough never to trust any Nigerian official, I am tempted to believe that Lamido Sanusi is genuine and will have the guts to carry the fight to the end, even if it means resigning in the face of political pressure that is bound to manifest soon. I have heard and read that Sanusi is already under political pressure to “slow down” I have heard that due to political pressure and calculations, Sanusi’s “sanitation exercise” will not go beyond the five banks. I have been told that Yar Adua is not interested in fighting corruption and since the bank looters Sanusi is pursuing are some of the president’s closest friends, it is only a matter of time before he is called to order. I do not want to believe these speculations and I am challenging Sanusi to prove them wrong.
For those of us who are watching this “show” with keen interest the ultimate proof of Sanusi’s sincerity will be what he does with or to the chief money launderers in the Nigerian banking system, Tony Elumelu and Jim Ovia. I expect to be attacked for this position by sympathizers of these individuals who have turned banking in Nigeria into some sort of gangsterism, but that is the least of my concerns. Mountains of evidence abound of the deep involvement of these two individuals in money laundering, illegal lending, foreign exchange round tripping and direct theft of depositors’ funds.
Lamido Sanusi said a few days ago that the CBN has completed the audit of eleven additional banks and the results will soon be made public. Millions of Nigerians are waiting and I hope Sanusi will not come up with a “tongue in cheek” argument as to why Tony Elumelu should remain at UBA and Jim Ovia at Zenith. However, I will not be surprised if he does because officials of the Nigerian government are known to be shameless and insensitive to public opinion. Indications are that Sanusi might disappoint me. The main reason being the fact that a seasoned banker like him who ought to know how rotten UBA and Zenith banks are decided to omit the two banks from the initial list of banks that were audited when one would have expected him to start from there. He may have his reasons but the time to prove it is drawing near.
Majek Adega
[email protected]
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