Adedapo Adesanya
By Adedapo Adesanya
The new Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Yemi Cardoso, has said he would adopt an evidence-based monetary policy as he assumed office upon confirmation by the Nigerian Senate on Tuesday.
He said the new leadership of CBN would “adopt an evidence-based monetary policy and shall not be making decisions based on a whim.”
The Godswill Akpabio-led Senate confirmed the nomination of Mr Cardoso’s nomination as well as that of the four Deputy Governors of CBN nominated by President Bola Tinubu.
The four deputy governors whose appointments were confirmed by the Senate are Mrs Emem Usoro, Mr Muhammad Dattijo, Mr Philip Ikeazor, and Mr Bala Bello.
While speaking at the upper chamber, Mr Cardoso emphasized the need to restore the apex bank’s independence and credibility by refocusing on its core mandate and ensuring a culture of compliance.
“Much has been made of past CBN forays into development financing such that the lines between monetary policy and fiscal intervention have become blurred.
“In refocusing CBN to its core mandate, there is a need to pull the CBN back from direct development finance interventions into more limited advisory roles that support economic growth,” he stated.
Mr Cardoso assured that the bank under his watch will operate transparent monetary policies with respect to data.
The CBN governor also stressed that his administration will not tolerate the errors made by past administrations of the bank.
He also assured that the CBN will retain its independence and not be hijacked or used by politicians as a tool of propaganda.
With his confirmation, expectations are that the postponed Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) Meeting which was earlier scheduled to be held on Monday and Tuesday (September 25-26) will hold soon.
