By Marvelous Nyang
President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the proposal of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to extend the deadline for the use of the old naira notes to February 10.
CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele announced the extension in a statement he read to the media on Sunday, February 28, 2023.
Emefiele explained that the CBN had sought approval from President Buhari to extend the deadline for the use of the old notes by 10 days.
“Based on the foregoing, we have sought and obtained Mr President’s approval for the following: A 10-day extension of the deadline from January 31 to February 10 to allow for the collection of more old notes legitimately held by Nigerians,” Emefiele said.
“A 7-day grace period, beginning from February 10 to February 17, in compliance with Sections 20(3) and 22 of the CBN Act allowing Nigerians to deposit their old notes at the CBN after the February deadline when the old currency would have lost its Legal Tender Status.”
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The CBN Governor also begged for the cooperation of all Nigerians in ensuring a hitch-free process for the implementation of the policy.
With the extension, many Nigerians who had experienced difficulty in lodging their old banknotes into the banks, to which President Buhari reacted on Saturday, would now be able to sort themselves out.
The rush by many Nigerians to meet the January 31 deadline earlier set by CBN has created hectic situations with a lot of bank users flooding banking halls with huge cash in old notes to exchange them with new ones.
Similarly, those who could not make it into the banking halls were seen in long queues at the few ATM points having the new naira notes across the country.
