Even With N30trn 'Missing' Allegation Against FG, North Will Never Forgive Soludo

Soludo

When the former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Prof Chukwuma Soludo wrote his first treatise condemning President Goodluck Jonathan’s economic management I knew instantly that he was looking for a way to ingratiate himself to a section of northern Nigeria desperate to take over power from President Goodluck Jonathan and also find job with the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) General Muhammadu Buhari if Buhari wins the forthcoming presidential election.

The media aide to the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Paul Nwabuikwu in his reaction also alluded rightly that Soludo was looking for a job with a Buhari’s government if the retired General wins, despite his pretensions that his treatise was ‘honest’ analysis of the country’s economic state with no attachment to any vested interest as he passed himself off as being neither a member of PDP nor APC.

However it is obvious that Soludo has embarked on a mission impossible even with his N30trillion ‘missing’ allegation against federal government. This is because he inflicted economic blows to the north in the course of the so-called banking consolidation he initiated, that left the region without a single bank as its only bank, the Bank of the North was ‘killed’ by Soludo despite spirited efforts the north made to save their all-important bank that was at the centre of economic development in the region. That was why I laughed when Soludo was parading President Musa Yar’Adua’s commendation letter at the end of his tenure as evidence of his good works at the CBN.

If Soludo is a man who is given to deep thinking, he should have reflected over the fact that he was qualified for a second term but Yar’Adua refused to grant him that honour despite his (Soludo’s) ‘wonderful’ works for the country. Did it not occur to him that no sooner than his successor Sanusi Lamido Sanusi entered the CBN headquarters many of the ‘reforms’ and ‘consolidations’ he carried out was upturned? Many banks that Soludo cleared as healthy was actually dead and Sanusi helped in burying Intercontinental Bank, Oceanic Bank et al.

Back to what Soludo did to Bank of the North. A retired director of the Bank of the North recently lamented the damage Soludo did to the region in the guise of banking consolidation. The former director said the region pleaded with Soludo to save the bank but he refused but was quick to save Intercontinental Bank, Oceanic Bank and others from a section of the country. The former director also revealed that when Sanusi was confirmed as the CBN governor, the first thing he( retired director) did was to attach the misdeeds of Soludo against the north, on the congratulatory message he sent to Sanusi. And as the saying goes the rest is history.

Is it not surprising that Soludo who could not muster the courage to challenge Sanusi as his ‘reforms’ were thrown to the dogs by Sanusi, has suddenly found his mojo, attacking the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and President Goodluck Jonathan at will and even throwing economic debate challenge to bout. He dare not open his mouth when Sanusi was the governor of CBN because all the skeletons in his CBN cardboard would have been exposed for the world to see the odour of corruption oozing from it.

For now Soludo can enjoy his new found fame in the north, since “my enemy’s enemy is my friend”. They are hailing him in the media today because he is 'hitting' Jonathan, but it would be very infantile of him to think that the north has forgiven him. Soludo would never be part of Buhari’s government if Buhari wins. Period!