CBN, ASSBIFI Wade In As...SSS Detains 20 Bank Managers

Twenty bank managers from 13 banks are being detained by the State Security Service (SSS) for alleged involvement in money laundering.

A source close to the bankers also confided in LEADERSHIP last night that the detained bankers who are mostly managers comprise five managers from Fidelity Bank Plc, four from Unity Bank Plc, while the remaining are from other banks.

The source, who sought anonymity because of the nature of the matter said, “I can tell you authoritatively that 20 bankers are being detained by the SSS. Most of the detained bankers are managers and have been detained for about two weeks.

“I can also inform you that they are being detained without trial. Some of the detained managers include five from Fidelity Bank Plc, four from Unity Bank Plc and an average of two from each of the other banks.”

CBN, ASSBIFI wade in

As banks across the nation brace up to down tools in protest against the arrest and continued detention of  13 banks officials, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions (ASSBIFI) have begun efforts at salvaging the situation before it worsens.

Speaking with LEADERSHIP yesterday, the director, corporate communications, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Ugo Okoroafor, said the apex bank was aware of the contentious issues and was already making necessary investigations.

The Monetary Policy Committee of the CBN is currently meeting in Abuja and the CBN governor, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, is expected to address the press today after the meeting.

Also reacting to the issue, the president of ASSBIFI, Comrade Sunday Salako, said:  “The matter is very technical now but we have commenced our investigation on it. We don’t want to say anything for now.”

The Trade Union Congress (TUC) president, Comrade Bobboi Kaigama, who was not in the country, said he was not aware of the issue for now.

Meanwhile, an executive of one of the affected banks told LEADERSHIP during  a telephone interview that the banks were yet to conclude under which umbrella they would make the strike move, adding that there is the likelihood of the Bankers’ Committee, which is a body of all CEOs of banks in the country, intervening.

The 13 banks directly affected by the arrests are Zenith Bank, Access Bank, Fidelity, Unity, First City Monument, First Bank, Skye, Sterling, Diamond, Ecobank, Wema, Guaranty Trust Bank  and CitiBank.

The SSS had subsequently swooped on the 13 banks in which the companies have accounts and even obtained a court order to freeze the accounts. Also, it had begun a systematic arrest and detention of senior officials of the bank in the last two weeks.

“One of those arrested is a director. Some others are risk managers, fraud control and detection officers, zonal and regional coordinators and key IT experts. There are compliance managers among those arrested. There are also account officers, branch managers, chief inspectors and heads of treasury among those arrested. To continue to operate without these key personnel could expose depositors’ funds to serious danger. So, the bank CEOs are thinking it might be safer to close shop to secure depositors’ funds and reduce exposure to a possible collapse of the nation’s banking system,” the senior bank source said.

Apart from the risk of possible compromise of the system, the bank chiefs are also frowning at the propriety of the SSS’ action. They fear that, unlike the EFCC and the CBN, which have the wherewithal to investigate bank transactions and fraud, the SSS may not be treading on a familiar turf.

The source said: “The banks daily, and statutorily, report transactions and fraud alerts to both the EFCC and the CBN. If there is any suspicion over such transactions, the SSS can crosscheck and verify with both the EFCC and the CBN. It is rather shocking that the investigation of transactions by companies of the sons of the Jigawa State governor would warrant such mindless and elaborate disruption of banking operations in 13 banks, which is what this arrest and continued detention of these critical bank officials amount to.”

Banks deny arrest of officials

But some banks reached by LEADERSHIP denied the arrest and detention of their officials while some other claimed they had no knowledge of such arrest. An official of Citibank said that none of the bank’s staff was ever arrested, claiming that the bank had no operation in Jigawa where the alleged fraudulent transactions were supposedly done.

Also, a senior executive at Wema Bank denied the involvement of the bank or any of its officials with the money laundering case being handled by the Department of State Security.

Guaranty Trust Bank also said none of its workers was arrested.

 An official in the corporate communications of the Lagos-based bank said: “I am aware that all the banks were called by the DSS but no one as far as GTB is concerned was detained. I can confirm to you that none of our staff is being detained or being interrogated by anyone or agency.”

However, some other banks, Access, Fidelity and Ecobank were not able to confirm the detention of any of their staff by press time, while others could not be reached.

Why we detained bankers –SSS

But the SSS has defended its detention of the bank officials. In a telephone interview with LEADERSHIP yesterday, the SSS spokesman, Marilyn Ogar, said that the bank workers were being held over money-laundering activities. She pointed out that the law empowers the Department to investigate allegations of money laundering and other issues of national security implications. When informed that workers in the banking sector were gearing to down tools over what they termed the arbitrary arrest and detention of their colleagues, Ogar retorted that the bank workers could go ahead and protest, saying that the SSS would not be put under pressure to abdicate its responsibility.

She said, “The bank officials are being held in connection with money laundering.  Who says that the SSS has no powers to investigate allegations of money laundering? Look at the law setting up the Service and you will see that it is part of our responsibility.

“Instrument 1 of May 1999 empowers the service to carry out the prevention, detection and investigation of threat of espionage, threat of subversion, threat of sabotage, economic crimes of national security dimension, terrorist activities, and separatist and inter-group conflicts and threat to law and order.”