NYCN, pro democracy groups, others seek FG intervention
By Lukman Olabiyi, Lagos
The woes of Nigerians continued Monday over the scarcity of new Naira notes as government institutions and business operators in Lagos State rejected old naira notes for transaction.
Many Lagosians who experienced difficulty in making transaction with the old Naira notes despite the Supreme Court’s order which temporarily halting the ban on their use, expressed sadness.
Even at the Lagos State High Court’s registry, many lawyers who came to files cases were shocked over the announcement of the court’s official rejecting old naira notes for any transactions.
A lawyer, Salami Agbaje who shared his experience over the rejection of the old naira notes expressed sadness and the condemned the action of the government’s officials who were staff of judicial arms of the government.
He said many lawyers who were the court’s registry in Ikeja to file cases were left helpless with the action of the court’s officials.
At the terminals of Bus Rapid Transit as well commuters also experienced similar thing, the tickers at the terminals insisted on new banks notes for transactions.
A commuter, Olatunbosun AbdulAzeez said many commuters including him were denied entrance to board the buses over their failure to pay with the new Naira notes.
A trader, Omotayo Olaniyan also shared his experience on the rejection of the old Naira notes by banks.
Despite the Supreme Court’s order many bank were still not accepting the old notes for transactions, which making their customers to rejected it as well.
Meanwhile, the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), Lagos State chapter, has condemned the lingering cash shortage experienced by Nigerians and called on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to disburse more new notes to banks.
The council also frowned at the fuel scarcity going on in the country.
At a briefing held in Lagos, the NYCN advised the Federal Government and CBN on the need to disburse new naira notes to all banks as soon as possible.
The youths also charged the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC to ensure a free, fair, and credible election.
According to the Lagos State Chairman of the council, Biliamin Sulaimon-Oba, the government should ensure its policies are people friendly, adding the current situation Nigerians are facing is as a result of the government not adequately considering the ordinary Nigerians in the implementation of its policies
Similarly, a coalition of pro democracy groups, Youth Awake Now (YAN), has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to order the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to reissue the old notes in large quantity back to the Nigerian economy to cushion the effect of scarcity.
YAN also urged the Federal Government to order the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) to immediately clear the bottlenecks around petroleum supply chains with military dispatch.
Representatives of the groups who spoke in Lagos, include: Yoruba Youth Leader, Eric Oluwole; Yoruba Youth Alliance, Lekan Wilki; Yoruba Youth Community Policing, Abiodun Rosanwo; Yoruba Afenifere Youths, Adewale Adeyemo and Congress of Yoruba Youths, Yinka Adedugbe
They called for urgent normalisation of all petroleum supply chains through which petroleum products which constitute the life blood of all economic activities of the peoples, gets to the local consumers.
The group expressed optimism that if the twin problem of scarcity of fuel and physical cash are addressed, normalcy will return speedily to the Nigerian economy, while government would have succeeded in averting timely any threat to the successful conduct of the February 25, 2023 presidential election and all the other accompanying scheduled elections.