Disquiet As CBN Decongests Head Office, Relocates Departments To Lagos

There is a disquiet as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is set to decongest its head office in Abuja and transfer some of its departments to Lagos State.

It was learnt that the apex bank made this known in an Internal memo seen on Saturday.

The apex bank stated that the move is meant to increase the productivity of the affected staff while also cutting costs and ensuring their safety.

It further said the decongestion would also improve the apex bank’s operational and workflow efficiency.

Some departments that were affected by the transfer included the Banking Supervision, Other Financial Institutions Supervision, Consumer Protection Department, Payment System Management Department and Financial Policy Regulations Department.

Part of the memo read, “This is to notify all staff members at the CBN Head Office that we have initiated a decongestion action plan designed to optimise the operational environment of the bank.

“This initiative aims to ensure compliance with building safety standards and enhance the efficient utilisation of our office space.

“This action is necessitated by several factors, including the need to align the Bank’s structure with its functions and objectives, redistribute skills to ensure a more even geographical spread of talent and comply with building regulations, as indicated by repeated warnings from the Facility Manager, and the findings and recommendations of the Committee on Decongestion of the CBN Head Office.

“The action plan focuses on optimising the utilisation of other Bank’s premises. With this plan, 1,533 staff will be moved to other CBN facilities within Abuja, Lagos and understaffed branches.

“Our current occupancy level of 4,233 significantly exceeds the optimal capacity of 2,700 designed for the Head Office building. This overcrowding poses several critical challenges:

“Safety Concerns: The building’s infrastructure was designed for a specific number of occupants. Exceeding this capacity has raised safety concerns, increased health and accident risks – and hinders efficient emergency evacuation.

“Reduced Efficiency: Crowded workspaces are negatively impacting productivity and collaboration. Additionally, overstretched facilities have led to increased maintenance costs.

“Structural Integrity: The building’s integrity can be compromised by exceeding its designed capacity.”

However, it was gathered that members of staff of the apex bank, especially married women are grumbling over the decision.

A source who preferred anonymity said the policy had already forced some members of staff to consider resignation.

“The affected departments are the major departments of the CBN. They are the only departments mentioned in the BOFIA Act [Banking and Other Financial Institutions Act].

“Moving them entirely will only further strengthen Lagos and weaken Abuja. When you move all these departments to Lagos, then what is left of the headquarters? It will become almost useless.

“Women colleagues that are married can’t cope with this decision, especially those from the North,” said the source.

The source alleged that the new management under Mr Cardoso had been hostile to the staff since his assumption of office.

“Since this management assumed office, every week an average of two staff members resign because of the hostile environment they created.

“This is on record and can be verified. The HR unit maintains the records of CBN staff, from recruitment to exit.

“The entire atmosphere of the bank is that of gloom and unease, as the staff are working in a state of fear and uncertainty due to regular threats to their jobs by the new management,” the source added.

While questioning the rationale behind the decision, the source said the move raised suspicions of a plot to elevate Lagos above Abuja and downsize staff.

“When the new management assumed office, there were rumours of plans to downsize, which it dismissed.

“But with this indiscriminate transfers of both married women and people with medical needs, the suspicion of workers is that they want to downsize through the backdoor, knowing full well that a lot of these married women will rather resign than be transferred away from their families.

“And some are saying it’s a Yoruba agenda of strategically moving units of government from Abuja to Lagos because a similar incident happened in the NNPCL Retail,” the insider added.

Another source revealed that some heads of department had already briefed their team members to begin preparations for transfer to Lagos, adding that some affected staff had already received their transfer letters.

The source, therefore, appealed to well-meaning Nigerians to prevail on the management of the apex to rescind its decision, saying it will affect their productivity.