EX-ICAN CHIEF URGES CBN TO ABIDE BY BOFIA

A former ICAN official has called on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to douse the controversy surrounding the so called Islamic banking by restricting itself to the tenets and spirit of the Banking And Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA).

Mr Abayomi Ogunjimi, former chairman of ICAN, Amuwo district, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday that the appeal had become imperative because the issue had polarised the nation. Ogunjimi said that the wrong interpretation of the Act was the reason behind the uproar which had greeted the initiative floated by the CBN.

'CBN needs to de-emphasise the religious connotation in Islamic banking and maintain the non-interest banking system' contained in the Act. Ogunjimi said that Nigeria needed the benefits of non-interest banking to cushion the effects of high interest rate on businesses.

'As a business man, an interest free facility would be considered as a means of funding,'' he said, and called for a shift in the scheduled date of implementation to enable the CBN mobilise and sensitise Nigerians to the idea.