Nigeria’s reform journey continues to face a familiar challenge: even where administrations are sincere about transformation and sustainability, progress is often undermined by individuals who pay lip service to reform while pursuing personal and parochial interests. Unfortunately, the experience of Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company reflects this recurring pattern.
The first and most costly error the CBN-nominated board made was retaining a member of the previous management team as acting managing director, ensuring continuation of the toxic culture that needed reforms. Though he had been with the company as an executive director, his avarice, poor management style, lack of communication, focus on parochial interests and vindictiveness are well known within the company. He Is widely regarded BY STAFF OF THE COMPANY as the worst member of the previous management team, WHO rose through the ranks due to patronage from A FORMER governor of the CBN.
The current Acting Managing Director, Abubakar Sule Minjibir, Marafan Kano is widely perceived within the Company as a beneficiary of patronage rather than merit — and this perception is reflected in both management style and outcomes. Since 2009, he has remained within the Company’s orbit: first as Special Adviser on Currency to the then Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, later as General Manager of a subsidiary, then as Executive Director in 2018, and now as Acting Managing Director for the past eighteen months.
Over this extended tenure, there has been no clearly articulated strategic agenda attributable to Minjibir that has measurably strengthened operational efficiency, governance, or commercial sustainability. Instead, staff accounts consistently point to Minjibir’s tribalism, weak leadership, poor communication, religious bigotry, internal division, and an atmosphere of fear and distrust. Under the previous executive team — of which he was a prominent member — the leadership was widely regarded as dysfunctional and fragmented. Among staff, he was often viewed as the least progressive member of that team.
Following the appointment of new CBN leadership, Mr. Minjibir reportedly secured his retention by persistently portraying his fellow executives as incompetent or corrupt. In most governance frameworks, an acting appointment rarely extends beyond a few months; yet he has remained in acting capacity for eighteen months without a transparent competitive process. Rather than consolidating reform, there are growing concerns that he has focused on discrediting reform-minded executives while positioning himself as indispensable.
Equally troubling are issues of governance optics and financial prudence. At a time when the Company is under financial and operational pressure, significant expenditures have reportedly been incurred on medical treatments and allowances. Reports indicate that in early 2025 alone, over $300,000 was spent on overseas medical care in Dubai, in addition to substantial recurring monthly medical costs of 20million Naira for him and his dependants totally 360million in the last 18months
recently Mr Minjibir paid himself 1 year housing allowance upfront running into millions when he is supposed to proceed on pre-retirement leave. In a reform environment where cost discipline should be paramount, such expenditures raise legitimate questions.
The recent rightsizing exercise, which saw approximately 250 employees exit was justified as necessary for sustainability. However, in the short period since the other acting executives were exited without notice new hires have reportedly been made in significant numbers. This inconsistency undermines confidence in the rationale behind the restructuring and fuels perceptions of patronage-based recruitment. Allegations of preferential hiring along state or regional lines further weaken institutional credibility and cohesion.
After nearly two decades in various senior capacities — from adviser to General Manager, Executive Director, and now Acting Managing Director — there remains no identifiable reform blueprint or transformative milestone clearly associated with his leadership. The absence of a forward-looking strategy, coupled with governance concerns, makes it difficult to reconcile his continued tenure with the broader national reform narrative.
If Nigeria’s reform agenda is to be credible, institutions such as the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company must be led by individuals whose capacity, integrity, and vision are beyond question. Sustainable progress requires transparent appointments, measurable performance benchmarks, and leadership grounded in merit — not patronage.
Without decisive action, the Company risks remaining trapped in a cycle where personal interests eclipse institutional progress — and where reform becomes rhetoric rather than reality.
