Former President Goodluck Jonathan, speaking at a book launch in Abuja, denied suspending former Central Bank Governor Sanusi Lamido Sanusi for whistleblowing about $49.8bn allegedly missing from Nigeria’s coffers. Jonathan argued that no such money went missing and said Sanusi’s claim was baseless, noting that the figures fluctuated from $49.8bn to $20bn and eventually $12bn.
Jonathan clarified that Sanusi was suspended due to financial misconduct identified by the Financial Reporting Council, not for exposing missing funds. He also pointed out that investigations by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Senate Committee found no substantial evidence to support Sanusi’s claims, though $1.48bn was unaccounted for by the NNPC at the time.
In response, Sanusi maintained he was “constructively dismissed” and expressed no personal grievances against Jonathan. He also lamented vested interests working to frustrate the Dangote Refinery project, calling for Nigeria to capitalize on the opportunity to end fuel importation.
