Following the planned relocation of some of its departments from the FCT headquarters to Lagos state, the Central Bank of Nigeria CBN has said that it is deploying at least 1,500 members of its staff to resume at its Lagos office beginning from Friday 2 January.
According to sources from the bank who spoke on the condition of anonymity said that the strongly criticized relocation plan is still active as the Apex bank is already mobilizing the affected members to resume at the Lagos office on Friday.
“Yes, the plan is still on and they will resume work by February 2, which is the first week of next month.
“Some have already gone ahead. Over 80 per cent of the Banking Supervision Department staff have been redeployed and the same for the Payment System Department”. The sources noted.
Recall that authorities of the CBN had earlier announced the plan to move some of its departments to the country’s commercial hub for staff safety, improved productivity, and possible decongestion at its headquarters.
According to the Apex bank, the action was necessitated by many factors, including the need to align the bank’s structure with its functions and objectives and redistribute skills to ensure a more seamless geographical spread of talent.
The bank further noted that that it was also in compliance with building regulations, as indicated by repeated warnings from the facility manager, and the findings and recommendations of the Committee on Decongestion of its headquarters.
According to reports, the departments expected to relocate include Banking Supervision, Other Financial Institutions Supervision, Consumer Protection Department, Payment System Management Department, and Financial Policy Regulations Department.
This development is building up amid growing agitation by the Northern Elders Forum and some other Northern groups for the president to reverse the decision.
Earlier, a northern senator, Ali Ndume warned the president against moving some government agencies from the Nation’s Capital to Lagos citing possible consequences of the planned relocation.
The Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Ali Ndume, was quoted as saying; “Those misleading the President are not doing him any good because this is going to have some political consequences. If Tinubu were not elected president, the CBN governor would not be there. It was not Lagos votes that put Tinubu there.” He added.
The Northern Elders Forum are alleging that such move by the president was aimed at short changing the northern region and weakening the Nation’s capital.
