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The Senate has urged the Central Bank of Nigeria to extend the deadline for the withdrawal of old currency notes from January 31 to June 30, 2023.
The Senate resolution followed a point of order raised by Sen. Mohammed Ndume (APC-Borno) during Wednesday's plenary.
On October 26, the CBN announced plans to redesign the 200, 500, and 1,000 naira notes.
Raising Orders 41 and 51 of the Senate Standing Rules, Ndume stated that the request for a date extension should be treated as a matter of urgent national importance in order to prevent imminent hardship on Nigerians.
"This Senate notes that many Nigerian banks opened their vaults to customers and depositors on Thursday, December 15, to exchange their old currency," Ndume said.
“Some Nigerians are already envisaging long queues in the banking hall across the country as a result of people trying to get access to the new naira note.
“The old notes are expected to be in circulation along the new ones until January 31 when the old ones are expected to be phased out.
It is expected that many Nigerian businesses will start to rig the old notes as soon as banks start paying redesigned notes to customers.”
The lawmaker also said that access to the new notes would be compounded by recent circular by the CBN which limited the amount of cash withdrawal by corporate entities to withdraw within certain period of time.
He stated, “The withdrawal of old notes from circulation if not extended beyond 31, many Nigerians will be thrown into hardship and to avoid the repeat of 1984 experience withdrawal of old notes.”
Contributing Senator Adamu Aliero (PDP-Kebbi) said that it was true that in rural areas, people were not even aware that there was going to be currency change.
“So this motion is very apt and timely. If we insist on the date given by CBN, it will cause a lot of hardship for our rural dwellers.
“Majority of our people live in rural areas where there are no banks and PoS. It is appropriate we extend the time as suggested in the motion,”Aliero said.