CBN Warns Nigerians Against Hoarding Of New Naira Note

Fatihat Olaitan

Nigerians have been urged to desist from hoarding the newly redesigned Two Hundred, Five Hundred and One Thousand Naira notes to tackle the looming scarcity.

Director of Consumer Protection, Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Hajia Rashidat Mongunu stated this while paying a courtesy call on the Olofa of Offa, His Royal Highness, Oba Mufutau Gbadamosi Esuwoye during a monitoring exercise to some microfinance banks in Offa.

Hajia Mongunu explained that the apex bank had made available redesigned notes to circulate in society, however, activities of some scrupulous group hoarding the money make it looks scarce with people going to banks to collect money at the same time.

The CBN Director noted that currency management is a cycle however Nigerians have not allowed the cycle to mature before hoarding it.

She said that the situation could only get better when people started spending money already hoarded as enough money was already in circulation.

She further stated that CBN is engaging traditional rulers to sensitize their people to have positive attitudes and be confident that the naira redesign policy was not to punish anyone but to better the economy.

In a remark, the Olofa, Oba Gbadamosi said the extension of the legality of the old notes from January Thirty-first to February Tenth was responsible for the problems people are currently facing, as many Nigerians people had deposited all that they had by the Thirtieth of January anticipation to start spending the new notes on First of February.

Obe Mufutau Gbadamosi however advised that if the CBN wants the policy to be received with open arms and successful, it should make the new notes available for people to spend.