The Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa, has disclosed that three state governors are being monitored over moves to launder stashed billions of naira through table payment of salaries to workers.
In an interview on Thursday, Bawa also said raids on Bureau de Change (BDC) operators would be sustained, urging Nigerians to support the system for the benefit of all.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had on October 26 announced that the country’s currency would be redesigned to address many issues having negative effects on the economy.
While the redesigned notes would be released on December 15, Nigerians have up to January 31, 2023, to deposit the old notes in banks. However, the rush by politicians, traders, investors and other members of the public to cut corners and convert stashed funds into dollars, property and others, have created tension in the economy.
The Central Bank of Nigeria governor, Godwin Emefiele, had said the move was to counter terrorism financing and hoarding of bank notes by members of the public. The apex bank is set to redesign the N200, N500 and N1,000 notes.
Speaking on Thursday, the EFCC chairman disclosed that some governors are devising means to launder money they stashed in their houses. He said so far, they are closely monitoring three of them.
Bawa, who refused to disclose the identity of the three governors, however, said two of them are from the North, while the third person is from the southern part of the country.
He said intelligence at the disposal of the commission, showed that the three governors have concluded plans to inject the money into the system through table payment of their state workers’ salaries.
“Let me tell you something, the intel that I have yesterday and I would want you to take this thing very seriously. Already, some state governors that have some of this cash stashed in various houses and the rest are now trying to pay salaries in cash in their state,” he said.
Asked whether the commission would summon the governors, the EFCC chairman said they are closely monitoring them.
“I don’t know how they want to achieve that but we have to stop them from doing that. Well, we are working, they have not paid the salaries in cash yet but it is a very serious thing. The move is against section 2 of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act.
“The law is very clear regarding cash transactions. Anybody that is to consummate any cash transaction as an individual, if it is not through a financial institution must not be above N5 million and if it is above that it is criminal for you to engage in such transaction. And for corporate entities it is N10million.
“Yes, I agree the salaries are not up to that but why are you all of a sudden, and all along you have been paying people salaries through their bank accounts and now you want to pay them in cash, what are you trying to do? They will come under a lot of guises, they are trying to do verification of officers, that is what we have gotten,” the EFCC chairman added.
The EFCC boss also confirmed that some people are rushing to dispose their stashed funds by buying property.
“We are aware of that. Even if you dispose of your property and you receive cash, for that cash to be of value to you after January 31, 2023, you have to take it to the bank; so what happened, are you coming to the bank with those millions? That is why we are working with the bankers and if you have this information let us know about it,” he said.
Bawa further said the raids of BDC operators will continue. This, he said, is very important to protect the system against the laundering of stashed funds.
“They (BDCs) are very important in the sense that a lot of people that have this naira cash, will want to convert them to USD or other foreign currencies, that is why they are very important.
“And based on the known gullibility of these people (BDCs), they are willing to accept this cash from the owners of these monies and they are willing to depart with the foreign currencies that they have and so that is why they are very important and very critical to us in this project that we said to ourselves that we are going to do,” he said.
When Bawa’s attention was drawn to the fact that the dollar was rising despite the raids on BDC raids, he said it is a function of demand and supply.
“The truth of the matter here is just a simple function of demand and supply, people are rushing this commodity, not that they are going to use it for any meaningful business engagement but they are just rushing for it, just a store of value, that is what is happening.
“And what they say in economics is the higher the demand, the higher the price; so people are just seeing USD or other hard currencies just the way that they are seeing gold, to get it exchanged and store their value,” the EFCC chairman noted.
