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CBN Governor Lamido Sanusi, CBN Headquarters in Abuja (background).

The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Lamido Sanusi, has said that more former bank chief executive officers facing trial for criminal offences will go to jail.

Sanusi, while briefing journalists on the sidelines of the ongoing World Bank/International Monetary Fund meetings in Washington DC, United States on Saturday night, said that the CBN had enough evidence to convict the sacked CEOs.

The Minister of Finance, Mr. Olusegun Aganga, who also addressed journalists, said that the Nigerian economy, with a 7.4 per cent growth rate in the first half of 2010 , had been ranked the third fastest growing economy in the world. The top two are China and India.

Sanusi, spoke against the backdrop of the conviction of a former Group Managing Director of Oceanic International Bank Limited, Mrs. Cecilia Ibru, on Friday.

He said, “I have no doubt in my mind that we have enough evidence to convict everybody that we have charged. It’s just that it can take a long time...

“In each of those banks, I know what I saw and I told the public from the very first day. I have no doubt in my mind that every one of those people (sacked bank chiefs) that are being tried for criminal offences will go to jail.”

He commended the Ministry of Justice for doing a good job on the judgment against Ibru.

Sanusi said, “I’m not personally happy at somebody’s misfortune, but I think as a country, we have to make sure that when a law is broken in such a manner, people must pay a price and that is the important lesson.

“The fact that Mrs. Ibru has been convicted is a big lesson for the elite and for the rich and the powerful because nobody thought it could happen.

“It’s not a perfect conviction, it’s not ideal, maybe I would have wanted more in the circumstances, but the Justice Ministry has done a very good job.

“You must not forget that the total cost of assets in the books of Oceanic Bank was N191bn, that is the highest recovery in criminal trial in the history of Nigeria and that is money going to depositors.

“I commend the Minister (Justice) for holding firm on this and the political support that remains after the transition is also very important.

“When people said that the bank chiefs would eventually walk out free after the death of the late President Umaru Yar’Adua, I said I knew President (Goodluck) Jonathan as Vice-President and that it would not happen.

“I think this is a good thing for the country because it has shown that nobody listens to all the talk about somebody is my friend or somebody is from a part of the country anymore.

“Whoever you are, if you commit an offence, if you cross a line, you will pay a price for it.”

The CBN governor, who said the N191bn would go back to depositors, added that whatever value the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria put on Ibru’s seized assets would go back to the bank’s books.

He , however, described Ibru’s admission to the three of the 25 counts of fraud and mismanagement against her as “honourable.’’

Sacked chief executive officers of Intercontinental Bank Plc, Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, Bank PHB Plc, Finbank Plc and Afribank Plc, among others, are currently facing trial for offences ranging from reckless credit management to outright stealing.

On the allegations against him and others by the former Group Managing Director, Intercontinental Plc, Mr. Erastus Akingbola, Sanusi said it was better to wait and see what would happen at the end of the court cases.

On the alleged planned take-over of Intercontinental Bank by Kwara State Governor, Dr. Bukola Saraki, he said, “If you had money and you want to buy a bank, would you acquire a bank with a negative capital of N400bn? Why?

“To the best of my knowledge, Dr. Saraki, has been struggling to get Societe General Bank of Nigeria back on its feet; he doesn’t have enough money to recapitalise Intercontinental Bank. I’ve never had any such discussion with him. But it’s a political time and people make all sorts of comments.”

He also noted that by the end of October, 2010, a significant proportion of the banks would be able to announce the names of their preferred strategic partners in terms of recapitalisation.

On the licences of the 224 microfinance banks that were revoked, Sanusi said the action was taken after thorough investigations.

He added that if the apex bank could verify that any of the MFBs had raised enough capital, its licence would be restored.

Sanusi was named the “Central Bank Governor of the Year, sub-Saharan Africa” by the global business magazine, Emerging Markets.

The organisers of the award said this was in recognition of his radical intervention in Nigeria’s financial sector, which has prevented an “impending bigger collapse” at the height of the Nigerian banking sector crisis last year.

Also speaking with journalists, Aganga described Nigeria’s growth rate as a good development, especially at a time the economies of the developed countries were contracting.

He added that, with new policies being initiated by the Federal Government, “this could be the defining decade for Nigeria.”

The minister also said that the future was bright for the Nigerian economy, which according to him, was yet to fully harness its abundant human and natural resources.

The IMF had in its World Economic and Financial survey made available to journalists in Washingtong DC, on Thursday, said that Nigeria’s output real Gross Domestic Product was expected to accumulate from seven per cent in 2009 to 7.4 per cent in 2010/2011.

The fund, however, predicted slow growth for Nigeria, compared with the Republic of Congo, Botswana and Ethopia, which it said would grow at 10.6 per cent, 8.4 per cent and eight per cent, respectively in 2010.