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Emefiele Insists On CBN Deadline
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Informal Sector Of Nigeria’s Economy In Comatose As Traders And Buyers Binker Over Old Banknotes
When two elephants engage in a duel, the grass suffers just as the Nigerian populace have become victims of what most luminaries might termed as” judicial rascality” demonstrated by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele consequent upon his declaration in the early hours of yesterday that the February 10 deadline for currency Swap remains sacrosanct.
The CBN Governor’s declaration which was a defilement to the Supreme Court ruling that shifted the deadline on the currency Swap to February 15, threw the entire nation into disarray as operators of the informal sector of the economy, adhered with military alacrity to the directive.
With the New naira notes still far from being accessible, traders and transporters alike reject the old naira notes for petty business transactions as earlier reported.
Investigations by The New Diplomat showed that banks are also rejecting the old naira notes, a decision which is antithetical to the CBN’s order that banks should continue to accept the old Banknotes from dispositors until they are directed otherwise.
The Nigerian populace who are caught in the web of this strange drama, have become despondent as either the bank or the traders in the marketplace would accept the old naira notes.
But Emefiele in his submission, stated that enough widows were opened to Nigerians, who, he said, “legitimately” acquired the old naira notes to make deposit in anticipation for the new Banknotes, adding, that the policy, which was targeted at politicians, would help to check mate vote buying and election rigging in the forthcoming general elections.
The CBN Governor who claimed that some unknown politicians are hell bent to frustrate the policy by planning with Managing Directors of commercial banks to mop up the quantum deposit of New Naira notes meant to pay bank customers.
Against this backdrop, the various security agencies as the Economic and Financial Crime Commission, EFCC, the Independent Corrupt Practice Commission, ICPC and the State Secret Service,SSS were all deployed to monitor banks engaged in illicit transaction with the new naira notes as apprehend those trading on the new currency under bridges in Lagos and other big cities.
Dissatisfied with the scenario playing out between the CBN and Supreme Court on one hand, and the Nigerian populace and Emefiele’s undecided deadline for the currency, renowned Lawyers as Femi Falana and Professor Ise Osegey had in separate occasions, jointly condemned the CBN Governor’s flagrant disregard to the Supreme Court ruling.
But on the flip side, financial experts were of the opinion that the Court has no jurisdiction on such matters.
They hinged their argument on the inconsistency in the monetary policies as the Court cannot adjudicate on matters of inflation rate.
” Let the supreme court ruled to bring down inflation rate in Nigeria. So any Nigerian who is not satisfied with the rate at the money market can go to court, the lordship would rule to either reduce or increase the rate. It doesn’t work this way. The same scenario is playing out here,” said a renowned banker who proffered anonymity.
Beyond these prisms, farmers in the North whose products are perishable are loosing millions of Naira on daily basis due largely to poor sales.
The informal sector of the nation’s economy has collapsed as traders record poor sales on daily basis while Nigerians lament their inability to access the new naira notes to meet their immediate demands.
