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Ahead of the deadline announced by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, for the mopping up of old naira notes, mixed reactions have continued to trail the process.
A number of people who spoke with Radio Nigeria in Ogun State expressed concern about the time-frame as the an end of old notes as legal tender was too short while others maintained that the compliance level among the stakeholders would reach the peak before the deadline.
The situation was viewed differently by the people, depending on their area of engagement.
To a group of youths encountered by Radio Nigeria at one of the popular ATM galleries in Abeokuta, the approaching deadline was an avenue to catch fun as they took turns in trying out the cash machines to check if they dispensed the old or the new notes.
The youths who referred to their action as “catching cruise” disclosed that they had gone round the city to find out that most banks only partially complied with the directive of the CBN as the ATMs were loaded with a mixture of old and new notes.
Another resident, Mrs Tinuola Akinola was full of excitement about the new currency which according to her, was colourful and beautiful to behold, stating that touching the new money always gave her the feeling of holding international bills.
In separate reactions, traders who spoke with Radio Nigeria at some markets in Abeokuta, Ilaro, Sagamu, Ota and Ijebu-Ode complained that the new notes were scarce but expressed the hope that the relevant authorities would ensure the availability of the newly introduced notes before the CBN deadline.
Similarly, Mr Aminu Ibrahim and Mr Samuel Olanipekun who said they were yet to set eyes on the new money, 10 days to the CBN’s deadline appealed to the apex bank to shift the set date for the mop up of the old notes.
In a contribution, a communication consultant, Mr Bolaji Adeniji, urged the stakeholders to cooperate with the CBN to ensure that the redesigned naira notes achieved the purpose of bridging the inflation gap in the nation’s economy.
Responding to the people’s reactions, the Abeokuta Branch Controller of the CBN, Mr Wahab Oseni advised customers to report any bank whose ATMs failed to dispense new notes at the office of the Central Bank in Abeokuta.
Mr. Oseni who explained that the bank had embarked on sensitisation campaigns among the market men and women across the state about the new cash policy, advised the people not to reject the old currency for their business transactions until the last day, on the 31st of this month. (RN)
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