The Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE) has charged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to immediately simplify the ongoing currency swap implementation processes and also direct banks and other financial institutions (OFIs) to begin to collect the old banknotes still in the hands of millions of Nigerians.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Centre, Dr. Muda Yusuf, at the weekend pointed out that simplifying the processes would reduce the current hardships of depositors and ensure fairness, justice and social inclusion.
He expressed serious concern about the conflicting directives emanating from the CBN on where to deposit the old currency notes, noting that the confusion is inflicting additional pains on already traumatized millions of innocent Nigerians seeking to return the old notes.
Yusuf maintained that the prevailing situation on the cash swap nationwide had shown that it is evidently impractical for the CBN offices to properly handle this process of receiving old currency notes which are still in abundance in the hands of millions of Nigerians.
To alleviate the sufferings of Nigerians in the implementation of the policy, the economist appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari and the CBN to give the process a human face and also the CBN to allow the old notes to be deposited at the commercial banks to ease the current pains and ordeal of returning the old notes.
He canvassed: “The process should also be simplified to accommodate millions of rural dwellers, the informal sector players, the over 30 million un-banked Nigerians and several millions that are not literate.
“The current guidelines which require filling of forms on the CBN portals, generating codes etc. does not reckon with millions of Nigerians that seek to return their old notes who are not literate, who don’t have access to internets and who are in very remote locations in various parts of the country.
“They are Nigerians and are entitled to a fair consideration in the implementation process. Most of them are women, micro enterprises and small businesses contributing immensely to employment, poverty reduction and social stability at the bottom of the economic pyramid of our country. It is bad enough that their lives and livelihoods have been terribly disrupted and disoriented”, Yusuf added.
