The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele, has assured that no Nigerian will lose money under the Naira redesign project, adding that the project is in the overall interest of Nigerians and the economy.
He said the CBN will also accept the old naira from banks after the February 10 deadline.
Mr Emefiele gave the assurance during a meeting with the ad-hoc committee on the review of the Bank’s cashless policy and extension of the timeframe of the currency swap programme of the Bank on Tuesday, January 31, 2023.
He added that subject to the provision of Section 20(3) of the CBN Act, Nigerians would be given the opportunity to redeem the face value of the Naira in their possession after the currency would have lost its legal tender status on February 10, 2023, deadline only at the CBN.
“Nigerians will not lose their money,” he declared, just as he sought the cooperation of the National Assembly to ensure the success of the programme.
However, the CBN governor did not mention a duration when the banks will stop collecting the old notes.
Section 20 (3) of the CBN act states: “Notwithstanding sub-sections (1) and (2) of this section, the bank shall have power, if directed to do so by the president and after giving reasonable notice in that behalf, to call in any of its notes or coins on payment of the face value thereof and any note or coin with respect to which a notice has been given under this sub-section, shall, on the expiration of the notice, cease to be legal tender, but, subject to section 22 of this act, shall be redeemed by the bank upon demand.”
Speaking further on the CBN act, he explained that even after the old currency has lost its legal tender status “we (CBN) are mandated to collect these money (old notes) and I stand with the House of Representatives on this.”
“What does that mean? It could (old notes) have lost its legal tender status which means we have moved on. But if you have your money that you have not been able to send to the bank, we will certainly give you the opportunity to bring them back into the CBN to redeem it. Either you pay it to your bank account or you want to do an exchange, we will give it to you. You will not lose your money. This is the assurance I give to Nigerians,” Emefiele said.
Emefiele, who was accompanied to the meeting by all the four deputy governors at the Bank, disclosed that the Bank had deployed about 30,000 super agents to work with the Bank’s staff currently in the hinterland to ensure that the underserved and vulnerable members of the society are adequately catered for.
The CBN Governor also disclosed that the CBN was working closely with relevant agencies of the Federal Government to ensure full compliance with the CBN guidelines issued to the deposit money bank for the seamless distribution of the new banknotes.
Speaking earlier, the Chairman of the Special Ad-hoc committee, Honourable Ado Doguwa, expressed the support of the House of Representatives for the cashless policy of the Bank, stressing that the House would assist the CBN in achieving its mandate in that regard.
Hon. Dogowa welcomed the submission of the CBN Governor and stressed the need for more collaboration.
