The Governor of Benue State, Chief Samuel Ortom has joined the National Assembly and other prominent Nigerians in calling for the extension of the deadline for the storage of use of the old Naira notes.
This is even as the governor revealed that he hasn’t seen the new naira notes with his vantage position as the governor following the scarcity of the new naira notes.
The CBN has come under intense criticism over the scarcity of the new notes even as prominent Nigerians have asked for extension which the CBN governor on Wednesday, during the monetary policy committee briefing, declined to grant.
The CBN had announced January 31, 2023 as the deadline for the old Naira notes to be used as legal tender. Yet with five days to the expiration of the deadline a lot of Nigerians haven’t seen the new Naira notes.
The CBN Governor, Mr. Emefiele said the CBN will not grant any extension as Nigerians had sufficient time to exchange their old notes of N200, N500 andN1,000 for the new redesign options. He also claimed that the CBN had printed sufficient notes and handed over to the banks for disbursements. But he couldn’t explain why the banks have failed to distribute and where rationing the new notes.
Governor Ortom said he was worried d about the short duration for.yhe withdrawal of the old notes considering that rural Nigerians have limited access to financial services and a significant are not even aware of the currency change with the attendant scarcity of the new notes.
He spoke in Government House, Makurdi when the Governing Council of Joseph Sarwaaun Tarka University, Makurdi (JOSTUM) paid him a visit, Ortom said, “As governor, I have not seen any new naira despite six days to the deadline. What will happen to the man in the village? I join the senate in calling for the extension of the change of the currency from the old to the new one.”
“Our people are already going through the pains of insecurity in this country. A majority of the people are suffering. Things are not okay in the country, Mr President should know this.” he stated
