By Agency Reporter   Thursday, 23 Sep 2010

 

The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Lamido Sanusi, said in Abuja on Tuesday that depositors‘money in banks would not be used to sponsor political campaigns.

 

Sanusi, according to the News Agency of Nigeria, made the statement while answering questions from newsmen at the end of the 72nd Monetary Policy Committee meeting.

 

He said, “I do not have any information or evidence of banks giving money to politicians and if you have any, I will appreciate you name it.

 

“We have made it clear and I think that banks understand that the depositors‘ funds and their balance sheets are not to be used for funding political campaigns.”

 

The governor said a number of measures had been introduced to check fund transfer, including limiting the amount of cash transfer by cheque and electronically.

 

Sanusi said that the process of receiving reports of cash movements and monitoring activities of accounts of politicians in the country had been put in place.

 

Commenting on intervention funds for the agriculture and power sectors, the governor said the CBN would ensure full support of the real sector of the economy.

 

He said, “What we have done is to provide a fund that is eligible for the commercially viable power plants to borrow, that is, for long-term at single digit interest rate.

 

“In our discussion with the National Pension Commission, we aimed at unlocking the pension funds, making money available to the power sector.”

 

The government had said that if the power companies were allowed to borrow money externally, it would expose the economy to huge interest rates and exchange rate risks.

 

The CBN boss said that N2tn from PENCOM would go for short-term instruments, adding that a process would be worked out for the money to be made available for the power sector.

 

“From the central bank, between the pension fund and our fund, we should be putting in N500bn to N600bn in power, and that potentially can create 6,000 megawatts,” he said.

 

Source: Punch