Naira scarcity: FG silent, as banks’ strike action nears

Federal Government has remained silent over last Friday’s threat by commercial bank workers to proceed on an industrial action over persistent violent attacks on their offices across the country by irate Nigerians protesting scarcity of the new Naira notes.

The threat may worsen an already precarious situation in the country, as bank depositors have grappled with scarcity of both the new banknotes, and the invalidation of the old notes by the Federal Government and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) directives to that effect.

Making the threat of a possible strike action known, Friday, the Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institution (ASSBIFI), in a statement dated February 17, 2023 with reference number ANS/WR/JA/OP/5018 and titled; “Stay at home order,” directed its members to stay away in any state where banks are attacked by depositors owing to cash scarcity.

The statement signed by President of the association, Comrade Olusoji Oluwole, and dispatched to all units’ president and secretaries, explained that the action ‘will continue daily until normalcy is restored.’

“The National Secretariat has been inundated with reports of threats and attacks on fives and properties of members and bank branches, and subsequently has been on the field to monitor and confirm the reports.

“We issued warnings and appeals to government to provide security measure for the safety of lives and properties of our members within and around the bank premises but regrettably the attacks have continued without any form of security for the safety of our members, and the recent being the attack today, Friday 17th February 2023 on one bank branch at Epe, Lagos State.

“We cannot leave the lives and properties of our members exposed to obvious danger.

“Consequently, all members should today immediately stay away from work in any state where bank branches are attacked.

“This is to continue every day until normalcy is restored.

“Please note, you will be availed further directives as events develop,” the statement read.

However, days after the association released the statement, the Federal Government has yet to react, as uncertainties continue to grow over the scarcity of new Naira banknotes, and the rejection of the old notes across several business public and private platforms

President Muhammadu Buhari had, last Thursday, announced the reintroduction of the old N200 notes into circulation effectively sealing the fate of the old N500 and N1000 denomination of currencies, on the back of the expiration of the February 10 deadline for the expiration of the tenure of the old money as legal tender in the country.

While state governors had approached the Supreme Court to force the Federal Government and CBN to stay or reverse action on the Naira policy, the apex court on its part, had fixed February 22 as date to rule on the mater, even as it ordered the government to halt its new currency policy.

Already, some state governors in the country have directed residents to ignore President Buhari and CBN’s order, and continue using the old Naira notes, even as others have threatened punitive actions on commercial banks operating in their states which failed to accept deposits of old notes from customers.

Last Friday, violent protests erupted in Oyo, Edo, Delta, Ogun states, as well as in Kano, Katsina and parts of Lagos, as angry protesters attacked commercial banks destroying their property over the Naira scarcity and rejection of deposits in old notes.

Meanwhile, reacting to the continued scarcity of the new Naira banknotes, Chairman of the Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa, claimed during an interview with Hausa Service of the BBC, last Tuesday, some commercial banks were allegedly ‘putting a spanner in the works’ of government by making the new naira bills unavailable to Nigerians.

This is as he solicited the assistance of Nigerians in exposing ‘individuals and organisations hoarding the new naira notes for the agency to track them and seize the money.’

According to Bawa, information gathered from the CBN showed that so far, the apex bank had issued new bills to the tune of over N400billion, adding that commercial banks were refusing to issue them to the public.

“This is the next stride that EFCC believes will bring succour to the ordinary Nigerians.”

“They (commercial banks) are denying the poor people money in the banks and ATM machines. That’s why we send our officials to the states to monitor the banks and the people who are involved in the shoddy deal and undermining the process,” he said.

Bawa said ‘a huge reward awaits whistle blowers who helped in exposing the places or the persons who stockpiled the new notes.’

Also, speaking during a briefing with members of the Diplomatic Corps on the Naira redesign, earlier Tuesday, in Abuja, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele blamed Nigerian politicians for the Naira scarcity, as he warned against hoarding of currency notes, further cautioning that law enforcement agencies will arrest those who disrespect the Naira.

“The CBN has noticed that some politicians are buying the new notes and storing them for political purposes.

“We have also noticed that some Nigerians are capitalising on the transition to charge exorbitant fees or demand cash payment on the false pretext that PoS don’t work, especially at petrol stations.

“These selfish actions for personal monetary gain are creating hardship for Nigerians and may come at the expense of fellow citizens’ lives and livelihood.

“We have noticed that some members of the public are hoarding the new notes thereby restricting their flow through the economy.

“Cash kept at home will not circulate but may fuel a perception of scarcity which leads to higher demand for the currency, signalling to those who don’t have an urgent or immediate need to store cash.”

The CBN Governor stated further that there is tremendous tension and elevated agitation by leaders who should be calming the frayed nerves of the citizens.

“We believe that a large proportion of these agitations are staged and sponsored propaganda or an exaggeration of the reality. No doubt that there are pockets of pressure in some areas, and the CBN is working hard to shift resources to those areas in order to ease the tension.

“The situation is substantially calming down since the commencement of the Over-the-Counter payments to compliment ATM disbursements and the use of super agents,” Emefiele said.

Commercial banks, on their pat, have maintained that supply of the new banknotes has remained inadequate to meet the demands of customers.