Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP), has asked the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to extend
the deadline for the validity of old naira notes.
There has been increased tension in the country as Nigerians
scramble to meet up with the deadline amid poor circulation of the redesigned
N200, N500 and N1,000 series.
This has led to several calls for the extension of the
January 31 deadline — but the CBN has insisted that it will not shift ground.
In a broadcast on Saturday, Atiku said a lot of people,
particularly those in remote areas, will be unable to meet the deadline.
He asked for “a slight extension”, adding that it will be
magnanimous of the government to ease the burden on Nigerians.
“The ongoing policy of the CBN to redesign the naira has
generated wide reactions across the country and beyond,” he said.
“This exercise is a worldwide practice and therefore, not
new. Especially as the January 31st deadline draws closer, a great number of
Nigerians, out of good conscience, have expressed apprehension about how the
deadline will make life more difficult for a large number of Nigerians.
“The large number of
unbanked population who do their businesses, especially in the rural area, will
find it almost impossible to meet up with the deadline of January 31st to
exchange their old bank notes for the redesigned currency.
“I’m aware of the challenges that farmers and others, like
artisans, in remote areas of the country go through in moving cash from remote
areas to commercial banks for conversion.
“On this note, I’m compelled to align my position with the
upsurge of demands for a slight extension of the monetary conversion policy.
“The January 31st deadline will certainly cause a heavy
discomfort on our people and it will be magnanimous on the part of government
and regulatory agencies to ease the burden on the people in the public
interest.”
The PDP standard bearer asked the CBN to continue
sensitising the public about mobile banking while an extension is granted.
“While we can continue to sensitise the public on the
impending imperative of mobile banking policy, it is important for the CBN to
consider an extension of time that the public can convert their unbanked monies
into new notes thereby reducing the financial consequences on these vulnerable
citizens,” he said.
“I believe such a painful experience is not the intention behind
the currency redesign initiative.”
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