Cardoso, deputy CBN governors assume office ‘after taking relevant oaths’

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said Olayemi Cardoso has assumed office as the acting governor of the apex bank, as he awaits the approval of the senate.

In a statement on Friday, Isa AbdulMumin, director, corporate communications at CBN, said Cardoso took the relevant oaths of office at a brief ceremony held at the bank’s headquarters in Abuja.

Also, the deputy governors nominated by President Bola Tinubu were sworn in and assumed their duties pertaining to the monetary and financial sector policies of the federal government.

The development followed the resignation and suspension of Godwin Emefiele, former CBN governor, and Fola Shonubi, who was appointed temporarily to the position.

The deputies working alongside Shonubi — Aishah Ahmad, Edward Lametek Adamu, and Kingsley Obiora — also resigned.

Commenting briefly on Cardoso’s profile, CBN said: “An Economic and Development Policy Advisor, Financial Sector Leader, former Chairman Citi Nigeria and Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget in Lagos, Cardoso brings over three decades of managerial experience on board.”

Cardoso, according to the bank, is an alumnus of Aston University, Birmingham, United Kingdom, “where he studied managerial and administrative studies”.

“He also holds a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School, United States of America,” the CBN added.

Cardoso was nominated as CBN’s governor on September 15, 2023.

He was expected to head the apex bank’s monetary policy committee meeting on September 25 and 26, but the CBN postponed the meeting without giving a reason.

The new date has not been communicated.