The quite outspoken former Central Bank Governor, now Emir, HRH Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, SLS II, as quoted in an article in DailyTrust of August 2016 captioned, "FG creating billionaires through forex – Sanusi," leveled some very strong allegations against the Buhari administration's central bank foreign exchange policies with grave impact on the nation's economy.

“We have created our own billionaires since 2015 from foreign exchange subsidy,” the emir said in a speech at 15th Joint National Council on Development Planning meeting held in Kano... "They got the dollar at N197 and price their goods at N300... For instance, when the CBN was selling dollar at N197 and people were buying at N300, if I sit down in my garden and pick up my phone I would have enough people to call in the industry to get 10 million dollars at officials rate and sell at N300 and make a profit of over N1bn and if I do that four times in a year, for doing nothing I would have earned N4bn." [Emir SLS II DailyTrust ]

Canvassing for the devaluation of the naira to approach its real value and diminish the corruption-favorable gap with the parallel market, the Emir further stated as relayed in DailyTrust:

“And people were telling us that this policy was to help the poor. We should not devalue because if we do the poor people would suffer...People that were profiting from this were the ones telling the government that if you devalue people would suffer; meanwhile they all got the dollar at N197 and price their goods at N300. The poor paid the price of the devalued currency and the rich schemed up the profits and it went on for one year and we talked and talked and talked. If the present administration continues to behave the way the immediate past government behaved, we will end up where Jonathan ended. You may not like it but that is the truth.” [Emir SLS II DailyTrust ]

It was an affirmation of a huge problem many of us had complained bitterly about which sat at the epicenter of the Nigerian economic recession. The former CBN governor called it the "foreign exchange subsidy." I had written strongly about it in April of that year in a piece titled " Like Jonathan's Subsidy Scam, Like Buhari's Forex Scam ."

The article introduction read: "The implication of these two government facilitated processes is virtually the same: Nigeria's cabal benefit and make billions while the masses wither and die."

Indeed Jonathan's fuel subsidy scam was no different from the forex subsidy scam that has been run by CBN governor Godwin Emefiele comfortably under the Buhari government. Both processes have had identical devastative impacts to the Nigerian economy while cementing the poor in deadly hardship. According to Reuters , in just a short 11 week slot examined between March and May of 2016, a single cabal, Aliko Dangote got $100 million dollars equivalent of government forex gift via this cabal forex subsidy racket.

Did Buhari know about this racket? It is impossible to tell. No one knows how much president Muhammadu Buhari knew while concerned about his ailment. How much news did his handlers give him and what spins did they put on it. Was he informed about public opinions? It is also impossible to quantify the effect the CBN nepotism scam exposed in a SaharaReporters release had on the president and if this influenced his tolerance of the apex bank governor's anti-people policies. What matters most is that for whatever reason, under Buhari's watch the CBN maintained several exchange rates favorable for the forex subsidy scam, until last week that is.

Acting President Yemi Osinbajo has moved to slash the gap between the official rate and parallel market rate by forcing the bank governor to flood enough dollars into the system to offset demand pressure on the black market. Forever more, after an eventual new stabilized level, those who hoard dollars will have fears of Osinbajo's anti-cabal and pro-people and the economy stance, and the naira can be expected to never again depreciate the way it has been consistently while Buhari gave Godwin Emefiele a free hand and total autonomy.

*President Osinbajo while being the minister of the economy, has operated with hands tied as the CBN governor in the past took no orders from him and as Vice president he had to seek approval from the cabal at the presidency.

A WashingtonPost article praising the Acting President brought to recollection the fact that it was during another similar instance when Buhari travelled and briefly handed over power to Professor Osinbajo that the Vice president ordered the over due recommended devaluation of the naira as SLS II and many analysts including myself had repeatedly urged..

Buhari vented his displeasure about the Osinbajo-directed devaluation when he returned . Clearly while Buhari's approach was Emfiele's approach which maintained a wide disparity in the rates of foreign exchange for the privileged and the masses, professor Osinbajo's economics is the path that prevents corruption and subsidy for the cabal, with the official rate devalued to its actual value and enough dollars in the market to eliminate the forex subsidy gap. With a single rate, foreign investors are encouraged as they can extract their earnings in foreign currency at the same rates they invested it.

Asked about the cabal subsidizing policy and its advantage for the select few, president Buhari shrugged as he told Al Jazeera correspondent Martine Dennis, " those who can afford it can still afford it ."

Hopefully soon, all will be able to afford it on level terms. There is hope.

Dr. Peregrino Brimah

https://www.thenigerianvoice.com/news/245807/osinbajo-moves-to-killforex-subsidy-racket-run-under-buhari.html

lalasticlacla

too long to read
FTC for the first time
someone should do the summary

Hard working acting president keep it up!

Mere commissioner eclipsing his principal in the race to advance the economy.

For every corrupt conduit sealed by government, three fresh ones are created. I think it's high time we start killing corrupt politicians and people. I mean the death sentence for anyone convicted of running any form of corrupt practises. And Buhari though his initial gragra has created too many self.

Hausa people and their cabals will never be happy with this. Buhari made many of his kinsmen rich with this stupidity. Only banks operate forex worldwide not bunch of uneducated folks given such magnitude of financial ability

Do I really care? There is always one racket or cabal runs taking place at any given time in this country after all!

There is no solution to Nigeria economic woes, there are only trade-offs.
You make something a little better to make another a little worse.

This revelation has eroded any respect I have for some people. I used to vouch for their integrity to the chagrin of my mother. Alas I was very naïve

God bless PMB. The country can suffer as long as your people dey prosper.

Joint ticket my foot. all these can not happen if buhari was still here. neither will it happen if there is hope of him coming back. we are just waiting for the funeral date or impeachment due to incapacitation or resignation letter

The CBN and commercial banks are most quilty of dollar round-tripping. They are the ones entrusted with these dollar at interbank rate, they hijack it and sell it to the public at black market rate.

Under the leadership of buhari praises will never go to Buhari him self bcz the difference is very clear between both..

When Bubu was there, nothing was working now he's away and things are improving under pyo...

okosodo:
Hausa people and their cabals will never be happy with this. Buhari made many of his kinsmen rich with this stupidity. Only banks operate forex worldwide not bunch of uneducated folks given such magnitude of financial ability

Nonsense, all are affected equally, the recession is no respecter of tribe, region or religion - perhaps the CBN governor, who is suspected as the main driver of the scam is also Hausa and likely therefore to collude only with his Hausa brothers at the exclusion of others?

When the CBN governor was embolden to carry out illegal recruitment,, didn't you people know that the same prime he favoured will come back and request for dollar at subsidized rate?

Shey badamosi is still with the dss for exposing the cbn corruption. Tell me the cabal it's not in control of the dss.

ItsMeAboki:


Nonsense, all are affected equally, the recession is no respecter of tribe, region or religion - perhaps the CBN governor, who is suspected as the main driver of the scam is also Hausa and likely therefore to collude only with his Hausa brothers at the exclusion of others?

Bros, i am speaking about what i know of and what i have been ding for 15 years + Check forexfactory.com/okosodo for proof

okosodo:
Bros, i am speaking about what i know of and what i have been ding for 15 years + Check forexfactory.com/okosodo for proof

So you have proof that Buhari ordered the CBN and Banks to preferentially assist only Hausa ppl with forex?
If so, pls provide the evidence - no excuses or assumptions pls.

TippyTop:
Mere commissioner eclipsing his principal in the race to advance the economy.

you don't have respect for your elders abi. Because that proud, corrupt Senor called him that doesn't mean you should follow suit.

ItsMeAboki:


So you have proof that Buhari ordered the CBN and Banks to preferentially assist only Hausa ppl with forex?
If so, pls provide the evidence - no excuses or assumptions pls.

ask google, the excuse he gave was that the banks were involved in selling to bdc's ilegally. He gave it to them directly

Ok

The will continue to drag Nigeria down as usual. Imagine Buhari as American President. The world will end in a week

okosodo:
Hausa people and their cabals will never be happy with this. Buhari made many of his kinsmen rich with this stupidity. Only banks operate forex worldwide not bunch of uneducated folks given such magnitude of financial ability

baba with all due respect I bow to ur intelligence I hav been saayn this countless ampung of times that it's only in Nigeria we glorify crap. I have never seen a country that gives so much raw dollars to uneducated pple with the sole aim of round tripping and causing economic terrorism.

all this started prior to 2015 when a bank profits took serious decline and there were non performing loans so our low life lazy cum bank MDS had to look the forex way to make quick profit buy selln to bdc in my opion those pple should be banned and every person who needs dollars should head to the bank it's world best practice.

okosodo:
ask google, the excuse he gave was that the banks were involved in selling to bdc's ilegally. He gave it to them directly

Who is giving to them directly; I don't suppose you meant Buhari himself dishing out forex to individuals (his kinsmen as you implied) - pls provide link, would prefer all of us being exactly on the same page when viewing this supposed evidence.

No matter how hard APC spin doctors try to distort facts, Osinbajo is a far better president and leader than Buhari would ever dream of becoming!!!

chiboyo:
No matter how hard APC spin doctors try to distort facts, Osinbajo is a far better president and leader than Buhari would ever dream of becoming!!!

I concur

kip ibori release our President

Papertrail11:


baba with all due respect I bow to ur intelligence I hav been saayn this countless ampung of times that it's only in Nigeria we glorify crap. I have never seen a country that gives so much raw dollars to uneducated pple with the sole aim of round tripping and causing economic terrorism.

all this started prior to 2015 when a bank profits took serious decline and there were non performing loans so our low life lazy cum bank MDS had to look the forex way to make quick profit buy selln to bdc in my opion those pple should be banned and every person who needs dollars should head to the bank it's world best practice.

You understand it, but aboki does not understand

ItsMeAboki:


Who is giving to them directly; I don't suppose you meant Buhari himself dishing out forex to individuals (his kinsmen as you implied) - pls provide link, would prefer all of us being exactly on the same page when viewing this supposed evidence.

its glaring i dont need evidence. Somebody in this page has just explained it

okosodo:
You understand it, but aboki does not understand

aboki Na dog Na
ruff ruff

okosodo:
its glaring i dont need evidence. Somebody in this page has just explained it

It is obvious you were expressing an opinion based only on mere speculations which you can't back up with evidence - a.k.a. lies.

okosodo:
Hausa people and their cabals will never be happy with this. Buhari made many of his kinsmen rich with this stupidity. Only banks operate forex worldwide not bunch of uneducated folks given such magnitude of financial ability

How?
What re u insinuating,pls?
that the recession didn't get to the Hausa folks?

the difference between crouch and buhari is one is tall and score goals earning his team vital points and also helping the climb the ladder, while the other is tall, foolish and specialise in scoring own goals thereby making his country crash from the top of the log to the bottom.


We r in a country were majority r fools.

On the issue of forex handling I must say PMB failed woefully. It shouldn't have been allowed to get this bad before drastic actions were taken. I'm surprised he didn't see how some corrupt Nigerians were enriching themselves at the expense of our economy. This is just unacceptable