The Central Bank of Nigeria has reiterated that the 1,000 employees who chose to leave their positions in December 2024 did so voluntarily, and were not compelled to resign.
The CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, stated this on Friday in Abuja at an investigative hearing of the House of Representatives’ ad-hoc committee probing the circumstances leading to the exit of the staff members and how the sum of ₦50 billion severance package for the affected persons was arrived at.
According to The PUNCH, Cardoso added that the affected persons opted to disengage through the voluntary Early Exit Programme with payment of full benefits.
Represented by Deputy Director, Corporate Service of the CBN, Bala Bello, Cardoso explained. “The Early Exit Program, Restructuring and Re-organization” are basically ways and means through which the performance of an organisation is optimised by ensuring that round pegs are put in right holes. The manpower requirement of the bank is actually met.
“I’m very happy to mention that the early exit program of the CBN is 100 per cent voluntary. It’s not mandatory. Nobody has been asked to leave, and nobody has been forced to leave. It’s a completely voluntary programme that has been put in place.”
He also noted that the exercise was not restricted to government agencies alone, saying, “I believe several organisations across the world, and even within this country, both in terms of the private sector and the public sector, are undertaking similar exercises.”
Continuing, Cardoso said, “In the past, we had instances in which cases of stagnation and lack of career progression appear. In an organisation, you’ve got a pyramid where from each level to the next level, the gap keeps narrowing. If not, you are going to have a quasi-organisation, an inverted pyramid.”