Emefiele: Redesigned naira printed locally under Buhari’s directive, EFCC witness tells court

A prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of the immediate past governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, on Tuesday confirmed that to the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) that the redesigned Naira notes were produced locally by Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company (NSPMC) by the apex bank under the former governor in compliance with late President Muhammadu Buhari’s directive.

Emefiele is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) before Justice Maryann Anenih, sitting at Maitama, Abuja, on a four-count charge bordering on disobedience to the direction of law and illegal act causing injury to the public.

In the charge, marked CR/264/2024, Emefiele was, among others, alleged to have between October 19, 2022 and March 5, 2023 disobeyed the direction of Section 19 of CBN Act by approving the printing of 375,520,000 pieces of colour swapped N1,000 notes at a total cost of N11,052,068,062 without the recommendation of the CBN Board and strict approval of the President, Federal Republic of Nigeria, which caused injury to the public.

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The offences allegedly committed by him, according to EFCC, were against Section 123 of the Penal Code, Cap 89 Laws of the Federation, 1990 and punishable under the same law.

He, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.

At the resumed hearing in the case today, while being cross-examined by the counsel for Emefiele, Olalekan Ojo SAN, the seventh prosecution witness (PW7), Chinedu Emere, an EFCC investigator, told the court that Emefiele wrote a memorandum, dated October 6, 2022, to former President Buhari seeking approval to redesign, produce and reissue the redesigned N1,000, N500, N200 and N100 notes.

He further said the former president approved the redesign of the Naira notes in his minute on the memorandum, but directed that the production of the notes be done locally.

“The defendant (Emefiele) sought approval of banknotes attached to the memorandum, which had already been redesigned already.

“The minute of the former president was that the production be done. He minuted: ‘Approved. But to be produced locally,” the PW7 told the court.

According to him, the defendant stated a number of reasons for the redesign policy, among which were a high counterfeit rate and worsening shortage of bank notes in circulation, adding that Emefiele also added wholesome hoarding of Naira notes by members of the public was another reason stated.

Emere that CBN raised bills of settlement to Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company (NSPMC) for the production of the redesigned notes.

Asked to confirm to the court if the Naira notes were produced by NSPMC, the prosecution witness answered in the affirmative, saying that, “The Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company produced the redesigned notes. This is in compliance with the residential directive for local production of the Naira notes.”

He, however, told the court that while NSPMC produced the notes locally, they were redesigned by a foreign company, De La Rue.

He informed the court that CBN in 2023 made a payment to De La Rue in British Pound Sterling for the redesign of the notes, while it made a payment to NSPMC for the production in Naira.

Emere confirmed that De La Rue was the company that originally designed the Naira notes that became the subject of redesign, adding that the features in the notes were also products of the foreign company.

He told the court that he could not remember if, in the course of the investigation, any of the deputy governors under Emefiele mentioned to the EFCC investigation team whether any Nigerian company ever designed Naira notes for the Nigerian government, adding that that was not the focus of their investigation.

He added that the investigation revealed that Buhari eventually launched the redesigned notes, but could not remember if the former president raised any complaints against the redesigned notes.

He then told the court that the EFCC investigation team came up with an investigative report after its assignment.

Meanwhile, despite the prosecuting counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo SAN objection to a request by the defendant’s counsel for the prosecution to make the investigative report available to the defence, Justice Anenih ordered the prosecution to avail the defence with the document to facilitate its defence.

She then adjourned further hearing in the case to Tuesday, February 10.