…Insists decision followed due process
BY EDMOND ODOK – The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has expressed unhappiness with the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmad, over claims that her ministry is in the dark about ongoing process of redesigning the Naira notes.
Effectively warding off the Minister’s attack on the project, the apex Bank insists the law and due process were elaborately followed to carry out the exercise, which is 12 years due.
Director of Corporate Communications, CBN, Mr. Osita Nwanisobi, who spoke on the development in Abuja Friday night, said remarks by the Finance Minister are quite surprising, maintaining that the Bankers’ bank remains a “very thorough institution that follows due process in its policy actions”.
Nwanisobi said in line with provisions of section 2(b), section 18(a), and section 19(a)(b) of the CBN Act 2007, the CBN Management had duly sought and obtained the approval of President Muhammadu Buhari in writing to redesign, produce, release and circulate new series of N200, N500, and N1,000 banknotes.
Accordingly, he said it is surprising for a top government official in the financial sector to disparage the CBN’s planned Naira redesign.
The CBN Spokesman charged Nigerians to support the currency redesign project, stressing that it was in the overall interest of the country and citizens to do so.
Nwanisobi, who noted that some persons were hoarding significant sums of banknotes outside the vaults of commercial banks, said such trend should be disencouraged by anyone who means well for the country.
Also admitting that currency management in the country has faced several escalating challenges which threatened the integrity of the currency, the CBN, and the country, the Communication Director said every top-rate Central Bank was committed to safeguarding the integrity of the local legal tender, the efficiency of its supply, as well as its efficacy in the conduct of monetary policy.
On the project’s timing, Nwanisobi said the apex bank had even tarried for too long considering that it had to wait 20 years to carry out a redesign, whereas the standard practice globally was for central banks to redesign, produce and circulate new local legal tender every five to eight years.
He assured Nigerians that the currency redesign was purely a central banking exercise and not targeted at any group, even as he expressed confidence the effort will, among other goals, deepen Nigeria’s push to entrench a cashless economy in the face of increased minting of the eNaira.
Additionally, Nwanisobi said project would help in curbing the incidents of terrorism and kidnapping due to access of persons to the large volume of money outside the banking system used as funding sources for ransom payments.
He said irrespective of status, it is important for all Nigerians to support the Naira redesign project, given its inherent benefits for the greater good of the economy and the country.
