Former Lagos governor, Bola Tinubu has advised the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to allow the redesigned naira and old notes to co-exist to solve the cash crunch in the country.
In a statement in which this submission was made, Tinubu noted that he was not against the decision of the central bank to redesign the naira note, and the drive towards a cashless economy, contrary to insinuations.
He, however, explained that he faulted the policy implementation.
According to the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, the past few weeks had been challenging for Nigerians, especially small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs), the poor and vulnerable masses, and those whose survival depended on daily cash transactions, saying they have felt the brunt of the combined problems of scarcity of fuel and scarcity of the new naira notes.
Tinubu further said he felt the pains of market women and artisans who had experienced low sales because customers did not have the cash to make purchases.
“We hear the loud cries of farmers in rural areas and hinterlands who have been forced to sell their produce at much lower prices so they don’t lose out completely. We hear every Nigerian dealing with the consequences of the roll-out of the cash swap programme.
“For the record, I and my running mate, Senator Kashim Shettima, and our campaign council do not have anything against the CBN naira redesign and cashless policy in principle.
“We are, however, only concerned about its disruptive implementation and the hardship it has brought on the generality of our people who currently can’t access their hard-earned money to meet obligations and the attendant consequences on the informal sector, where the majority operate.
“Despite the challenges and current difficulties, we are a country of resilient, bold and courageous people who don’t succumb to hard times. We have always overcome our most difficult times and come out better as a people and a nation. This time will not be different. We will make lemonade out of our current lemons,” the statement quoted Tinubu as saying.
