Pix of new Naira notes and CBN Gov. Emefiele with President Buhari.
The 36 state governors in Nigeria have unanimously called on President Muhammadu Buhari to extend the deadline for the cessation of the old Naira notes as a legal tender.
The governors, under the aegis of Nigeria Governors’ Forum, wrote a letter dated Monday, February 6, 2023, to the president explaining why the extension of the deadline is imperative.
Among others things, the governors forewarned that failure to extend the deadline may lead to an increase in unemployment and crime rate.
The letter was signed by the Chairman of the Forum, Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State who also urged Buhari to revisit the cashless policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
It would be recalled that the CBN had in December 2022 directed banks and other financial institutions to limit the maximum cash withdrawal over the counter by individuals and corporate firms to N100,000 and N500,000 weekly.
The apex bank added that withdrawals above the lower limit would require processing fees of 5% and 10% respectively for individuals and corporate firms.
The Godwin Emefiele-led bank also introduced new naira notes and gave January 31 as the deadline for the expiration of the legal tender status of the old notes.
The bank eventually moved the deadline to February 10 as millions of Nigerians could not access the new notes.
Speedy implementation of cashless policy may lead to anarchy, governors warn.
In the letter addressed to President Buhari, the governors noted that “the speed of implementation of the policy is a recipe for anarchy in the country.”
The governors said that though almost every state of the federation is feeling the hardship caused by the policy, states that have fewer banks like Borno in the Northeast and Bayelsa in the South-south suffer the most.
“It is our view, Sir, that an immediate limitation in the use of cash without robust engagement with stakeholders as well as the provision of accessible alternatives will deny such people legitimate sources of livelihood,” the governors wrote.
The NGF further noted that the policy may lead to “a rise in the number of unemployed and unengaged persons who will inevitably resort to crime to make ends meet.”
“This has a dangerous implication for the security of the country and the potential to derail Mr President’s security agenda,” the governors said.
The governors, therefore, beseeched President Buhari to extend the policy’s implementation span and order the CBN to ensure the availability of the new naira notes.
They also advised the president to direct state governments to be involved in future discussions regarding the policies to have revised policies that would recognise and consider states’ peculiarities.
The NGF added that Buhari should consider and approve the putting in place of necessary infrastructure and facilities within a reasonable time frame to facilitate the implementation of the policy, including introducing incentives to encourage the use of digital payment solutions.
Finally, the governors asked Buhari to direct that a robust enlightenment campaign be mounted to create sufficient awareness amongst the citizens of the thrust of the policy.
Source: Legit.ng
