•CBN Governor Yemi Cardoso
If there was a troublous period that characterised 2023, and which most Nigerians will never forget in a hurry, it is unarguably that of the period when Naira scarcity prevailed wherein not a few bankable and non-bankable Nigerians experienced difficulties in carrying monetary transactions by each passing day so much that some people lost their lives while others saw their businesses crumbled.
The trouble began at the end of October 2022 when the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said the Naira in circulation was N3.29 trillion prior to the redesign policy of the Naira notes, which resulted in the scarcity of banknotes, reports Daily Independent.
Thus, in the last week of October, 2022, the former Governor of the apex bank, Mr. Godwin Ifeanyi Emefiele announced that the CBN would begin to mop up the funds to reduce the amount of cash in circulation.
As gathered then, the redesigning of the Naira was part of the apex bank’s strategy to reduce cash in circulation.
As planned, the old N200, N500 and N1000 notes were to be redesigned, with the new banknotes released in December 2022, while the old notes were earmarked to be phased out on February 10, 2023.
Ostensibly to ensure that the redesign policy was well implemented, the CBN embarked on mopping up the old Naira in circulation, withdrawing N2.3 trillion from circulation between October 2022 and February 2023 while producing fewer new notes, notwithstanding a Supreme Court’s rulings on February 8, 15, and 22 that the old Naira notes were valid.
Expectedly, the experienced logjam which had legal and constitutional implications was one of the reasons that led to the protracted Naira shortage at the time, and the unpleasant situation lingered into March, despite a ruling by the Supreme Court on March 3, 2023, which ordered that the old Naira would remain legal until December 31, 2023, and as a result, the amount of money in circulation decreased by 70.14 per cent, from N3.29 trillion in October 2018 to N982.09 billion in February 2023.
Given the then seeming intractable situation, not a few Nigerians were unable to access money put in their accounts despite the decision that the new and old notes should coexist for 10 months since cash in circulation was declining and cash in commercial banks or the CBN’s vaults was rising.
Expectedly, the situation culminated into hoarding of the new currency as some Nigerians resorted to separating the old naira notes from the new ones in the bid to shield themselves from suffering consequences of CBN’s failure to release more new notes to the banks.
Mr. Amos Omale, in a graphic description of the situation which Nigerians faced at the time, said “Without a doubt, not a few Nigerians would describe 2023 as a terrible year, particularly from the perspective of the fact that it was a year when virtually all bankable Nigerians witnessed unprecedented cash scarcity that lasted for a couple of months, and in that vein left many of their businesses crumbling, and even as not a few of them lost their lives, particularly as its attendant consequences were that of pain, hardships and extreme suffering which lingered throughout the year”.
Mrs. Esther Inegbedion, in a similar graphic recollection of the Naira crunch witnessed early in the year said: “The ugly situation Nigerians were subjected to earlier in the year due to cash crunch is still fresh in the minds of every Nigerian, particularly as it was an excruciating conditions that was brought upon everyone by the ill-conceived and ill-implemented currency redesign policy of the immediate past government under the leadership of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
The sorrow which the now ditched policy foisted on Nigerians is not what anyone would wish to witness again in his or her lifetime.
Unfortunately, despite the biting situation which not a few Nigerians passed during the cash crisis in the early months into 2023, the situation seem not to have abated as it resurfaced ahead of the festive period, specifically in November 2023 thereby compelling most people to become anxious and disgusted over the unending scarcity of cash across the country.
But alas! Given the level of difficulties Nigerians passed through during the cash crunch, many Nigerians might have thought that such situation would never be witnessed again, even in the distant future.
But, that was not to be as the crisis resurfaced in November 2023 making people to question the sincerity of the apex bank in remedying the seeming year-long challenge.
Without a doubt, not a few Nigerians celebrated Christmas few days ago on a low key as the high cost of living worsened due to unavailability of cash which impacted the ability of many to embark on lavish spending throughout even the New Year eve that was also just celebrated.
Inflation, which was at 21.82 per cent, at the beginning of the year, has so far risen to 28.2 per cent as at November this year, an indication that the rate at which prices of goods and services are rising is faster than it used to.
The situation for many is worsened by the lack of cash in the system as banks were unable to give out cash to their customers and ATMs across the country remained dry, even a few days to Christmas.
Regular visits by our correspondents to some banking halls throughout the days of the Yuletide showed that banks were not dispensing cash while those that were dispensing gave out between a maximum of N20,000 and N5,000 to their customers.
In fact, the few ATMs that were dispensing set limit on the amount to be withdrawn by customers, and such amount at most was not more than N20, 000 whilst some dispensed up to N40, 000. Banks had earlier limited daily withdrawal limits to N40, 000 to stem the demand for cash.
In as much as the federal government had apologised when the situation became burdensome to Nigerians, the current scarcity still persists.
It would be recalled that Mohammed Idris, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, made the disclosure during a media briefing on President Bola Tinubu’s administration’s achievements in Abuja, and as a result the minister gave an assurance that the Central Bank of Nigeria was working to make new notes available to the public for spending.
“The government is aware that there is this cry by Nigerians of the scarcity of Naira notes and CBN is already working in that direction and new notes and more and new notes will be produced,” Idris said
“And Nigerians will have more money to spend…”
“It is not a deliberate policy to stifle Nigerians or take Naira out of Nigerians like during the Emiefele days.”
He said the Tinubu administration is optimistic that necessary steps have been taken to ensure Nigerians experience a better year in 2024.
In a similar vein, the Leader of the Senate, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele has revealed that the Federal Government will, from 2024, go after economic saboteurs who made lives difficult and unbearable for Nigerians, and insisted that the National Assembly would pass the 2024 appropriations bill on December 30 to sustain the January-December budget cycle.
As conveyed by a press statement from the Office of the Senate Leader on Tuesday last week, Bamidele made the disclosure at a session with journalists in Iyin Ekiti on Monday, saying that all federal lawmakers would have to cut short their holidays to ensure speedy passage of the 2024 appropriations bill.
The lawmaker expressed concerns about the activities of economic saboteurs who were doing everything to keep exchange rates high against the Naira or trying to make the Naira unavailable to the people who kept their money in banks.
Against the foregoing conjectures, he revealed that the federal government “will, from next 2024, go after economic saboteurs who are making life difficult and unbearable for Nigerians. The government will charge, prosecute and punish them for their acts of economic sabotage.
“All these will take place next year. In the long run, those who mopped up the Naira and Dollars from the markets will face the consequences of their actions. Those who mopped up the Dollars to keep commodity prices will not escape justice.
“Those who are speculating are also on the watch list of the federal government. At some points, the federal government will have to go after them,” the senate leader revealed the plan of the federal government.
Beyond all these activities of economic saboteurs, Bamidele assured Nigerians that Nigeria would witness a true era of Renewed Hope that would herald development, progress and prosperity, citing diverse plans the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had put in place to transform the national economy.
