Taking over from Lamido Sanusi as governor of Nigeria’s central bank was never going to be easy. But the manner in which Mr Sanusi was ousted could make his successor’s job that much tougher.
Analysts were shocked when Nigeria’s president Goodluck Jonathan suspended Mr Sanusi on February 20 for “recklessness and misconduct”, allegations that Mr Sanusi denies. Bond markets seized up in response to the news and the naira soon fell to a record low. Many believe the move was motivated by Mr Sanusi’s claim that $20bn of oil revenues had gone missing, something that severely strained his relationship with the presidency.
