AFDB Bows To Pressure Submit Akinwumi Adesina For Probe

The Board of Governors of the African Development Bank (AfDB) has finally bowed to the pressure of the United States and agreed to authorize an independent review of the report of the ethics committee of the bank’s board of directors on the allegations levied against the President of the Bank, Akinwumi Adesina.

Speaking on how the embattled AFDB president was misunderstood by the United States government at the meeting of the Bureau of Governors of the bank, comprising of Finance Ministers from all 81 shareholding countries, upheld the conclusions of the Ethics Committee of the Board in favour of  Akinwumi Adesina.

However, the Board agreed that an independent reviewer will review the process by which the Ethics Committee of the Board and the Bureau of the Board of Governors came to its rulings. This will be followed closely by an independent and comprehensive review of the Bank’s Whistle-blowing and Complaints Handling Policy.

It noted the Bank’s whistleblowers in contravention of bank rules, regulations and laws provided not a single piece of evidence compared to 250 pages of official supporting documentation by Adesina.

It stated the whistle-blower policy review is aimed at ensuring proper implementation of the policy and revised where necessary to avoid situations of this nature in the future.

In the words of the board, it is to ensure that “something like this never happens again”.