Currency Swap Deadline Extension Shows Emefiele Misled Buhari—Doguwa

By Dipo Olowookere

The Majority Leader of the House of Representatives, Mr Alhassan Ado Doguwa, has accused the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele, of misleading President Muhammadu Buhari on the Naira redesign policy.

On October 26, 2022, Mr Emefiele announced that the bank would change the look of the N200, N500, and N1,000 currency notes. The president unveiled the new notes a month later before hitting circulation last month.

During the announcement, the CBN chief said the old banknotes would cease to be legal tender in Nigeria from January 31, 2023, but last Sunday, Mr Buhari approved an extension of 10 additional days.

While speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday, Mr Ado Doguwa said the lower chamber of the National Assembly would not accept the 10-day extension because it violates the laws of the land.

The green chamber had asked the central bank Governor to extend the deadline by six months to July 31, 2023, to allow more Nigerians to return their old notes, especially because the new currency notes were still very scarce.

At the programme monitored by Business Post, the lawmaker accused Mr Emefiele of misleading President Buhari on the policy, emphasising that this was why he approved the 10-day extension.

“You see, Mr President may have been presented with a misleading briefing [on the policy], which may have made him act in the wrong direction by approving it.

“It (the extension) goes to confirm to you that if the President were actually briefed ab initio of the implications of the Naira redesign, he would not have come now to extend the deadline by 10 days, which means there is an issue.

“If the President were initially given the correct information of the policy with a specified deadline, certainly, he would not have made a U-turn to extend it. We are even saying the 10-day extension is not the position of the law and is not acceptable to the parliament because it contradicts the law.

“The CBN Act says when there is a redesign of the Naira notes, the old and the new currency notes are allowed to operate side-by-side until the old notes naturally vanish from circulation,” the lawmaker stated.

“I am sure Mr President will be one humble leader to understand when he is misled, and he should be able to come now to look at the right thing and take the right decision like he is doing now,” Mr Doguwa, who doubles as the Chairman of the House Adhoc Committee, added.

He further said the CBN did not consult with the National Assembly before redesigning the currency banknotes.

“The constitution of Nigeria says the central bank, being an institution of the land, must, at all times when it wants to embark on a new policy, must consult relevant committees or the leadership of the National Assembly.

“They did in the case of the cashless policy. You remember we invited them, the Governor was not able to attend, he sent the deputy governor to explain everything to us.

“But I want to tell you that for the Naira redesign, we were not consulted. It was purely their business and we believe this policy will affect the economy, the security of the nation and the forthcoming general elections. In fact, why change the Naira just some days before the election,” he said.

When asked if he suspects the election is being scuttled with the policy, he responded, “Yes, for someone who wanted to partake in the (APC) presidential primary. So, I won’t be surprised that he is doing all these to scuttle the polls.

“You don’t limit the amount of cash with politicians about 30 days to an election. Even INEC, and security officials will need cash for logistics and others. Their allowances are also paid in cash. So, I wonder how you create this problem at a critical period. I believe this move is political.”