Former Deputy Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Kingsley Moghalu, has waded into debates regarding the implications of the recent Naira redesign policy and cash withdrawal limit by the apex financial institution in the country.
The political economist also raised concerns about its implications for vulnerable Nigerians and charged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as well as security agencies to go after corrupt politicians.
Recall that on October 26, 2022, the CBN announced plans to redesign the N200, N500, and N1,000 notes. Consequently, President Muhammadu Buhari on November 23, 2022, unveiled the redesigned naira notes at the State House in Abuja, with the apex bank fixing January 31, 2023, as the deadline for the validity of the old notes.
However, there have been complaints from businesses and Nigerians over the availability of the redesigned naira notes with a call to the CBN to extend the deadline to avail more time for proper distribution.
Further to the launch of the redesigned naira notes, the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, had hitherto limited weekly cash withdrawals over the counter to N100,000 for individuals and N500,000 for organisations regardless of their size.
The apex financial institution later increased its weekly cash withdrawal limits set for individuals and corporate organisations to N500,000 and N5 million, respectively, following concerns from stakeholders and Nigerians.
