By JAMES KWEN
The National Security Adviser (NSA), Maj. Gen (rtd), Babagana Mongunu said the ongoing cashless policy was affecting military operations in some areas, stressing that some soldiers on the battle fronts were having financial difficulties.
Mongunu said this when he appeared before the House of Representatives ad-hoc committee on the new cash policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in Abuja on Thursday.
The NSA who was represented by Rear Admiral Abubakar A. Mustapha, the director in charge of elections and other security exigencies in his office, appealed to the legislature to evolve practicable solutions to the attendant economic crisis arising from the scarcity of the redesigned naira notes.
Speaking shortly before the meeting went into closed door session, Mongunu said “I am the Director at the office of the NSA. My mandate in the office actually is defence affairs.
“We actually chair the secretariat that conducts general security appraisal Committee which specifically focuses on elections and other security situations that might come up from time to time. I want to also apologize on behalf of my boss who is unavoidably absent. He left the country yesterday on a very special meeting and because he holds this committee in very high esteem he called and directed that I represent him.
“So, there is no written mandate. It was a verbal instruction that was given to me to attend this committee because he said somebody must attend. He understands the severity of the situation in the country and that is why he said someone must attend.
“Because of the sensitive of some of the information that will come bothering on security, there are things you cannot say in the media. But that being said, globally, military operations even in the first world countries, such policies if not well thought out will affect some certain things because some of our soldiers are deployed in places where they cannot actually access digital means of paying whatever daily subsistence.
“One of the main issues that the NSA has been talking about is that this committee sits down and articulate better ways of addressing these issues and he has directed committee in his office which I am part of to write out his position to assist the committee to meet its mandate. On more detailed level, I will be able to talk to the the committee when the press leave”.
Earlier in his remarks, majority leader of the House and chairman of the committee, Alhassan Ado-Doguwa said the meeting was in line with the mandate given to them by the House to interface with relevant agencies on the naira redesign.
Doguwa said the CBN policy was unpopular and had subjected Nigerian to untold hardships, adding that it was a threat to the general elections.
He said “For the records, this is a continuation of our duties and obligations as an Adhoc Committee of the House of Representatives in the specified matter of redesigned naira notes and swap policy of the federal government.
“I believe members would recall that on the last day of our sitting before we went for break, on the submission of our report, the House through the Speaker gave this committee an extended mandate to continue to follow up this matter so as to see to the implementation of this very important policy effective.
“We are therefore mandated to continue to follow up not only with the CBN as an agency or as a major regulator of our financial system but to follow up with all other relevant agencies that may have fallen in one way or the other important in the discussions before us.
“It is on that note that the committee sat yesterday and we decided that we need to interface with some very relevant agencies that would have a very significant role to play in the implementation of this very important policy.
“The policy is undoubtedly very unpopular among the people. It has created a lot of hardships among our people and in the economy. The policy has posed a lot of threat to our security and of course, the upcoming general election coming in the next few days.
“And it is on that ground that we have decided to invite the ministry of finance, being the ministry that controls the fiscal policy of the government. We also found it fit to invite the director of currency operation, who of course, is under the ministry of finance and the printing and minting company.
“The committee also decided to invite the chief executive of the printing and minting company, the NSA, and of course, the chairman of the National Electoral Commission (INEC).
“This we thought could provide an insight for the committee to come up with issues and find out some facts as to how we move ahead while we handle this assignment. The overall interest like I have always said is for us to come up with facts that will ultimately guide the House and through the speaker we take the necessary actions.”
The majority leader also said the invitees would appear before the committee on Friday, warning against dishonoring the invitation.
“I think it is fair to make it known to members that we have received communication from the ministry of finance apologizing that they cannot make it today, but they would be before the committee any other time they are given.
“We have also received communication from the printing and minting company through the MD who has also promised to make it unfailingly 11am tomorrow”, he said.
Briefing newsmen after the closed door session, Doguwa said the committee would be forced to use the legislative instrumentality to cause appearance of any invitee that refused to honour the invitation.
“We gave the NSA office the leverage to be heard in executive. It’s because basically some of the questions we asked answers are expected from him, were classified questions or classified responses.
On that note I will like to say to the public, yes, we have interfaced with the office of the NSA with regards to the mandate of the committee.
“And like I said, we took in confidence some.of the responses that he gave which of course will be very useful to the Committee and definitely will guide the committee when it come to writing the report that we will lay on the floor of the House of Representatives.
“By and large, I think it is only fair to say, whatever the case may be, that the position of the Committee has not changed even with the interface we had with the NSA, that the policy is unpopular, that the policy was untimely, the policy did not take the benefit of wider consultations from various sectors and agencies of government that were relevant with the subject matter.
“Of course, we will continue to engage with them. Perhaps, we will call the Central Bank Governor once again to address this Committee based on other points and facts we have extracted from the NSA,” he said.
While addressing the NSA’s representative, Doguwa noted that the Committee will still invite the NSA if the Committee has cause to clarify the issues of concern and “respond to few other questions that you might not have addressed, definitely we will do that.”
The majority leader acknowledged that two heads of the agencies invited to appear before the Committee sent communication to conveyed their inability to appear on Thursday, warning that the House will not hesitate to invoke relevant sections of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) to compel their appearance.
He said: “This brings me to the fact that some of the agencies we invited even though we have taken their apologies for not coming either yesterday or today, apparently because of the gaps in communication, that does not give it to them that we will take it lightly for any reason for any other person to fail to appear before this Committee tomorrow.
“We have scheduled the Nigerian Printing and Minting Company, of course, I’ve spoken with him on phone; the Clerk of the Committee has spoken with him, so we’ll expect him unfailingly tomorrow.
“We are also expecting Federal Ministry of Finance because it’s a relevant agency that’s very very much important and key to the subject matter.
“The Ministry of Finance through the Minister I believe they coordinate and direct the fiscal policy of the country and this is a matter that has direct implications on our fiscal policy as it relates to the economy and the cashless policy that is being contemplated for whatever reason.
“So the Ministry of Finance is very key and critical and we are giving them till tomorrow to appear before this all important Committee. And anybody failing to come then definitely the House through this Committee will definitely be forced to employ the means of instrumentality of the legislative tools to ensure their appearance before the Committee.”
According to him, the CBN Governor was not invited to appear before the Committee on Friday but the Director of Currency Operation in the CBN was invited to appear before the panel.
“The simple message to Nigerians especially heads of these agencies is that this Committee has to be taken very seriously. As long as members of the House will forgo their immediate political interest at home while campaign is going on, 17 days to the election, members are here discussing Nigeria and our future, and the future of our economy, I do not see any reason why anybody no matter how high or how highly placed he may be that for any reason will undermine the duties of this Committee.
“We expect everybody to appear in the interest of the people, in the interest of the institution he represents. Like I’ve always said, it’s not an Investigative Committee. It is a fact-finding mandate no more no less. We are doing this in the overriding public interest.
“The Committee will definitely not take it take it lightly with any agencies or heads of agencies who has undermine the summons of this Committee tomorrow between 10 and 11am. The National Electoral Commission has also been served, so we expect the Chairman to make appearance.
“It’s clear cut statement, nobody will be taken for granted here and we will not take anyone lightly when anybody appears to undermine the summons of hr Parliament or the House of Representatives in this case,” Doguwa added.