Old Naira Notes Swap: House of Reps Shares Details of Agreement with CBN Governor

• After failing to honour the House of Reps' invitations, the CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, finally showed up on Tuesday, January 31
• At the meeting, the Green Chamber said it agreed with Emefiele that there will no longer be any extension of the time limit for the validity of the old Naira notes
• The lawmakers also said it has directed the CBN governor, Emefiele, to submit a weekly report on releases of the new notes to commercial banks so that the House can verify relevant claims

National Assembly, Abuja - The House of Representatives says it has reached an agreement with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) that a time limit will no longer apply to the validity of old naira notes after the expiration of the February 10 deadline set by the apex bank.

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This was disclosed in a statement released by the Green Chamber and sighted by Legit.ng on Tuesday evening, January 31.

Recall that the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, met with the House's ad-hoc committee looking into the cashless policy and the naira swap timeframe on Tuesday after failing to honour previous invitations.

Old Naira notes: What is the implication of the House of Reps' agreement with the CBN?

According to the lawmakers, the agreement reached with the CBN means that the face value of the old N1000, N500 and N200 notes will continue to be redeemable in compliance with Section 20 (3) of the CBN Establishment Act.

Legit.ng gathers that banks will continue to mop up the notes even after they cease to be legal tender on February 10 without a time limit.

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CBN governor Emefiele to give weekly report

Meanwhile, the lawmakers also disclosed that it has directed the CBN governor, Emefiele, to submit a weekly report on releases of the new notes to commercial banks so that the House could verify claims by the CEOs of the banks that the apex bank had not been releasing enough cash to them.

The CBN was also directed to restore over-the-counter transactions by the banks and increase Automated Teller Machine (ATM) cash withdrawal limits in order to fast-track the circulation of the new notes.

The House added that the ad-hoc committee will continue to monitor the operations of the CBN in this regard to ensure compliance with the decisions of the House.

It further directed Emefiele to ensure that new naira notes are available across the Federation forthwith.

Ad-hoc committee submit report to House

It was further learned that the ad-hoc committee submitted a report on its engagement with Emefiele to the House, which later approved the recommendations as well as made additional recommendations.

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Legit.ng notes that the House, which was presided over by the Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, had waded into the issue when it became noticeable that new naira notes were not available in sufficient quantity as the earlier January 31 deadline set by the CBN to withdraw them drew close.

However, both sides agreed on Tuesday that the face value of the notes would continue to be redeemed beyond the new deadline of February 10 when they would have ceased to be legal tender.

Nigerians react

Ishaq Adamu said on Facebook:

"We are proud of you, our able representatives, may ALLAH strengthens your efforts."

Ibrahim Bala Kirfi said:

"Well done, but my suggestions to honorable house is that they should specify the time limit for the collection of old naira notes, so that Nigerians may be wellknown about the issue."

Labaran Shuaibu said on Facebook:

"It's absolutely unfortunate for our professionals not doing things in order. You're planning to initiate something new but nothing on ground for the actualization of what you are planning to do, just because of personal interest and wickedness of the highest to put masses in difficult situation"

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Bidex Kingsley said:

"First time in the history of Nigeria that the H.Rep members will represent the people well in national issue..."

Comr St. Jude D-Smog said:

"The old and new notes can run concurrently until the new notes circulates. Nigerian Government should stop punishing her citizens."

Naira redesign: Lagos Assembly commends National Assembly's swift reaction

Meanwhile, the Lagos state House of Assembly has commended the National Assembly for its swift intervention in the controversy generated by the naira redesign policy of the CBN.

Members of the Assembly say the policy has brought mass suffering to the citizens of the country, adding that the Nigerian economy is in danger due to the move by the CBN.

The lawmakers stated that even though the policy was a good one, its timing was wrong.

Source: Legit.ng