“We Can’t Get Food”: Governors, Traders, Other Northerners Cry Out Over Scarcity of New Notes
- Many Northerners have lamented the scarcity of the newly redesigned naira notes
- Former comptroller general of Immigration said the scarcity of the new notes has brought hardship to people in the region
- The Yobe State Governor, Mai Buni has begged the CBN to grant a special concession to the state as there are no banks available
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Ex-comptroller general of Nigeria Immigration Service, Muhammad Babandede has lent his voice to the cry of many Northerners who are lamenting the scarcity of the new naira notes.
According to Babandede, in Geidam, Yobe State people are suffering due to the scarcity of the new naira notes.
Source: Facebook
Ex-immigration boss cries out
In his tweet, the ex-boss of NIS said he spoke to a few people who told him that the situation is critical as there are no banks in the local government areas due to insecurity.
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Babandede added that PoS operators in the state are rejecting the old naira notes and do not have the new ones.
He said:
“Spoke to a few in Geidam, Yobe state — the situation is critical. No single bank in town due to insecurity. POS has stopped collecting old notes, and they don’t have new ones. The transaction has stopped. Children, old and poor, are crying because they can’t sell or buy food,” he tweeted.
Yobe State asks for special concession
On his part, the Yobe State governor, Mai Mala Buni urged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to make a special concession to residents of the state to allow them to exchange their old naira notes for new ones.
Specifically, Buni asked the CBN to grant an extension of the deadline for the state, explaining that only four out of the 17 local government areas in the state have banks, which makes it difficult for people.
Buni said;
“The CBN should be considerate to provide special services to such areas with special needs to avoid making them victims and losing their money,” Buni said.
“The CBN and commercial banks should, as a matter of urgent public interest, deploy alternative services at their disposal to salvage the situation.”
A report by TheCable said that the CBN has intensified its sensitisation effort on the new naira notes in rural communities, and announced the Cash Swap programme in collaboration with super agents across the country, to that effect.
The Programme started on Monday, January 23, 2023.
Traders in Katsina reject old naira notes
The development comes as market women in the North have started rejecting the old naira notes.
Punch reports that many market women and residents of Katsina State besieged banks in the state demanding new naira notes.
The report stated that they have stopped accepting the old notes in compliance with the CBN deadline of January 31.
CBN chooses 5 banks for Cash Swap Programme, excludes Lagos, Abuja PoS operators
Legit.ng reported that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has named about five money deposit banks to participate in its cash swap initiative.
The development comes as the deadline for the expiration of old N200, N500 and N1,000 notes as legal tender approaches.
The information was contained in a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document released by the CBN on Monday, January 23, 2023, where it detailed the procedure for the cash swap programme.
Source: Legit.ng
