- Let new, old Naira notes co-exist till Dec 2023 – APC Govs beg
BY EDMOND ODOK – Concerned about the current Naira scarcity heating up the nation’s financial and political sectors, the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) has extracted firm commitment from President Muhammadu Buhari to improve the situation of things within the next seven days.
Assuredly, the President is urging Nigerians to give his administration one week before the expiration of the extended deadline to resolve the nationwide cash crisis occasioned the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) redesigned Naira notes policy.
The country is currently facing torrid economic times as citizens and businesses struggle to access the redesigned currency while coming to terms with the apex bank’s cash swap policy of replacing high value Naira notes with new ones.
Addressing members of the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF), who stormed the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Friday seeking solutions to the bitting cash problem, the President maintained that the currency re-design would certainly give a boost to the economy and provide long-term benefits.
President Buhari while reacting the Progressive Governors’ fears the Naira crisis was threatening the good records of the administration in transforming the economy, said the remaining seven of the 10-day extension period will be used to crack down on whatever is standing in the way of successful implementation of the policy.
In a statement issued by the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, also quoted the President said the currency re-design as expressing doubts about the Banks’ commitment in ensuring the policy succeed.
According to the President; “Some banks are inefficient and only concerned about themselves”, noting that; “even if a year is added, problems associated with selfishness and greed won’t go away.”
Further admitting seeing television reports about cash shortages and hardship to local businesses and ordinary people, President Buhari said; “I will revert to the CBN and the Minting Company.
“There will be a decision one way or the other in the remaining seven days of the 10-day extension”
The President said in approving the policy, he demanded and received an undertaking from the CBN that no new notes will be printed outside the country, adding that there were assurances on adequate local capacity, manpower and equipment to print the currency for domestic needs.
However, expressing the need to carefully find out from the CBN’s management what the challenges have been, President Buhari said having heard the governors’ cries being closer to the people, he will act in a manner that will bring quick solutions to the Naira crisis.
In their submissions, the PGF told President Buhari that though they agreed the currency renewal is good and are fully in support of the policy, the execution has been quite challenging with their constituents becoming increasingly upset by the daily suffering.
They said as leaders of government and the ruling party in their different states, they were becoming anxious about a slump in the economy and the upcoming elections.
To cushion the economic hardship arising from the policy, the Progressive Governors pleaded that the President to use his good office in ordering the concurrent deployment of the new and old notes till the end of 2023.
Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State told journalists after the meeting with the President at the Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa, Abuja that while the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) mopped up over N2 trillion of the old notes, it printed only N300 billion which is grossly inadequate to meet the Naira demands by Nigerians.
Accompanied by his Kano State counterpart, Abdullahi Ganduje, the Kaduna Governor said CBN should have printed at least half of what they mopped up, which is N1 trillion if it wanted to implement the cashless policy.
