NIGERIA (Lagos) – The All Progressives Congress (APC) has urged President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to soften the pedal on his reported plan to force the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, to resign on the basis of allegation that he leaked the letter he wrote to the President over the unremitted $49.8 billion.

The party issued this statement in Lagos on Thursday, through its interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, who said the decision will further cripple the economy of the country.

It warned that any move to suspend Sanusi and use security forces to prevent him from entering his office, as reported by the media, would even be worse, because it would mean that the President was willing to circumvent the provision of the law that the governor of the CBN could only be removed by two-thirds of the Senate.

Alh. Lai Mohammed said the President should follow due process before making sensitive decisions of this caliber, adding that the party’s main reason for commenting on the planned removal of Sanusi, either through forced retirement or via suspension, was the impact that a crisis of confidence between the President and the CBN governor would have on the nation’s economy.

”This include a loss of confidence in the economic management of the country, leading to uncertainty among domestic and foreign investors, as well as pressure on the exchange rate as foreign portfolio investors in government bonds and the stock market make their exit, and the corresponding fall in the value of share prices.

”Overall, a protracted standoff between the President and the CBN governor will spell bad news for economic growth and employment and increase poverty. This is why we advise President Jonathan against precipitating a crisis in the economy, and we urge all Nigerians to advise him against such,” the APC said.

The party said there was no reason to believe that Sanusi leaked the letter he wrote to the President, considering the fact that the letter was written in September, while it was said to be leaked in December last year.