President Bola Tinubu has withdrawn the nomination of Ruby Onwudiwe as board member of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN.
According to reports, the decision follows pressure mounted on the president by members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) regarding Onwudiwe’s political affliation.
The complaints filed were regarding Onwudiwe’s support for Peter Obi in the 2023 presidential election, as reported by Western Post.
A post via her account on X, which reads “it was a landslide victory for Labour Party at my polling unit Lekki polling unit” was said to have incited the APC supporters who protested the nomination by Tinubu.
According to the report, flaunting her support for Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, its presidential candidate in the 2023 elections, and a display of the result at her polling unit, was a basis for the party members “to protest to senior government officials on the abnormality of the nomination of an opposition figure to serve at the apex bank”.
Tinubu reportedly immediately requested that the senate step down Onwudiwe’s nomination.
On March 14, Tinubu asked the senate to confirm the appointment of Onwudiwe as a member of the board of directors of the CBN.
Tinubu’s request was contained in a letter addressed to Senate President Godswill Akpiabio, and read at the plenary on March 13
“I am pleased to present for confirmation by the senate, the appointment of Dr Ruby Onwudiwe as a member of the CBN board of directors,” Tinubu said.
The president said Onwudiwe is a replacement for Urom Kalu Eke, who was unavailable due to conflict of interest.
Eke declined the nomination because he is still a consultant at the World Bank.
The new nomination came one month after Tinubu asked the senate to confirm five people as directors of the board of the CBN.
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On February 29, the senate confirmed four people (excluding Eke) as members of the board.
The directors of the board are; Robert O. Agbide, Ado Yakubu Wanga, Murtala Sagaley, and Olayinka Aliyu.
