Old notes: NANS Kicks Against Jan 31 Deadline, Says It’s Bad Timing For Students

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has asked the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to extend the deadline for old naira notes to cease being legal tender.

NANS in a statement signed by its National Vice President (External Affairs), Akinteye Babatunde Afeez, said the deadline set by the Nigerian government has made life more difficult for Nigerian students.

He added that some banks in school environment still give out the old naira notes to students with the deadline only a few days away.

The statement read, “As the NANS Vice President (External Affairs), I, COMR AKINTEYE BABA TUNDE AFEEZ, have come to lend my voice to the untold hardship that this naira notes swapping is dishing out to the Nigerian Students and other Nigerians as a whole. The Nigerian Students are not finding it funny anymore with the humiliation we face daily in the bid to swap and in the event of always meeting the old notes in the ATM whenever we go to withdraw.

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“Despite several concerns and appeals by the National Assembly, the Governors Forum, the Bank Customers Association of Nigeria, and a host of other stakeholders in the country for the CBN to extend the period for the currency swap of the new Naira notes as well as review of the cashless policy, the CBN has remained adamant on the January 31, 2023 deadline. This will not in any way be in favour of the Nigerian Students.

“It is of a fact that it’s not been long that ASUU called off the industrial strike that wasted our time and this coincided with the admission of new students into various institutions by JAMB and managements of various institutions all over Nigeria. This has made it paramount for registrations to be in progress and several financial transactions will be going on concurrently in various institutions across the nation.

“As at today, Friday, January 27, 2023, banking and other financial institutions are still struggling to cope with the rush by citizens to change their old currencies to new notes. Banks and POS outlets are struggling with the shortage of the redesigned new Naira notes ahead of the CBN deadline, consequently making it difficult for them to comply with the CBN directives as regards availability of the new notes for customers. The shortage of new notes is creating serious panic that may snowball into something tragic if not put to check on time.

“Somewhere in Abraka, Delta State today, some students of Delta State University who went for currency swap were locked out of the bank with the claim that some staff of the bank are working on some swapping and it’s not their turn yet. They eventually couldn’t do the swapping. As at today, many stores have started to reject the old currency with the fear that they may not be able to swap on Monday due to the rush that comes with Mondays and end-of-month financial reports collations in banks.”