Residents of Osun State have expressed anger and resentment at the scarcity of the redesigned Naira notes, saying the months of suffering over the cashless policy is a waste.
They also demanded that President Muhammadu Buhari and the Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Godwin Emefiele should have explained to Nigerians the rationale for the Naira redesign policy.
This is coming weeks after the Buhari-led Federal Government was compelled by the Supreme Court to allow the new notes and the old ones to be legal tender.
Newsmen recalled that the Federal Government, through the CBN in 2022, approved the redesign of the N200, N500 and N1000 notes.
Oladipo Joshua, a civil servant, stated that he was not happy that after the pressure he and members of his family underwent during the Naira scarcity, there was nothing really to justify the reason for the decision on the part of the government.
“We didn’t have any issue with the redesigned Naira, but when the deadline came, and the suffering increased, it was as if the government deliberately wanted Nigerians to suffer.
“The queues at the bank, the high rates collected by the POS agents, the extra charges you have to pay to buy everyday essentials and others became a headache.
“Some Nigerians didn’t handle cash for weeks, and some lives were also lost. I can tell you for certain that Nigeria has not fully recovered from it. There is still anger in the land even though the deadline has been extended till December, 2023,” he said.
Dorcas Onigbinde, a Modakeke-based trader, recounted her experience, adding that she nearly almost lost a substantial amount due to a business transaction that almost went wrong.
“My business has been cash-and-carry but due to the problem that came up after the deadline for the redesigned Naira, I had to switch to a popular Fintech to carry on with my business.
“I didn’t know how to work with the app, and I nearly lost a substantial sum, but luckily for a friend who called my attention to it,” she said.
Gbadebo Olawepo, a trader based in Ikirun, stated that after the issue was resolved and the CBN urged to allow for the old and new N200, N500 and N1000 as legal tender, he was expecting to see more of the new notes.
“It has surprisingly been scarce. Weeks after the issue was resolved, queues were still visible in banking halls and ATMs.
“This is sad, and I seriously believe unless orogen otherwise that the issue with the redesigned Naira was just a means of punishing innocent Nigerians who just want to live their lives,” he said.
Louis Odinakaose, a PhD student, criticised the Federal Government for not being truthful about the reason for redesigning the Naira notes at a crucial period in the country.
“They just left people guessing. A lot of conspiracy theories flying around, and nobody can give a tangible explanation for it.
“It was not fair, and some people need to be called to question.
“In saner climes, President Muhammadu Buhari and the CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, should have been called to question. Some heads should have rolled and resignations coming from left, right and centre.”