Femi Fani-Kayode, the Director of New Media for the APC presidential campaign council, is accusing the Central Bank Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele of trying to cause a crisis in the country and derail the nation’s democratic process.
Fani-Kayode stated this in a tweet on his official account page.
“Emefiele has weaponised the CBN and is an enemy of democracy. The policy of cancelling old notes must be totally cancelled until AFTER the election and then done lawfully.”
He continued his tweet by saying that the CBN governor is working to cause chaos in the country and instigate an uprising in order to prevent the election from being held.
“He wants to cause a crisis, provoke a people’s uprising, derail our democracy, and pave the way for an ING (Interim National Government).” He has NO plans to release enough new naira notes any time soon. He wants to STARVE the people of cash & drive them to rage out of frustration. This is not about politics but about stoking up protest & revolution. This is subversion and destabilisation. He must be stopped and caged!”
The CBN governor, with the backing of President Muhammadu Buhari, announced the introduction of new N1,000, N500, and N200 notes on 26 October 2022. The announcement was greeted with mixed feelings with many Nigerians frowning at the deadline given for the exchange of the old notes with the new ones.
The CBN has initially given January 31, 2023, as the deadline for the exchange of the notes, but after a national outcry, pressure from national lawmakers, and the inability of banks to make the process of obtaining the new notes seamlessly, the CBN has now announced February 10 as the new deadline.
Speaking when he appeared before the Mr Ado Doguwa-led House of Representatives ad-hoc committee on the naira redesign and naira swap policy, Emefiele pledged to adhere to sections 20 sub 3, 4,5 of the CBN Act. The CBN chief said Nigerians can be rest assured that they would now be allowed to deposit their old naira notes with the apex bank even after the February 10 deadline as stipulated by the CBN Act.
