The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has urged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to extend the January 31 deadline for the swap of Naira notes.
The CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, has ruled out an extension of the deadline for the withdrawal of the old N200, N500 and N1000 notes from circulation.
But the ACF, through a statement issued by its Secretary-General, Murtala Aliyu, on Saturday in Kaduna, noted that several people in the North, especially those in the rural areas, would not be able to meet the deadline if it is not extended.
The statement read: “As the deadline for the exchange expires this coming Tuesday, we are afraid that the majority of our people in the rural areas are unable to change their old currencies for the new ones. This is because even in the urban centres, the new notes are scarce.
“Also, where the CBN made some arrangements to facilitate such, the exercise is being challenged by numerous factors, such as lack of adequate access to bank services on the part of the people, cumbersome exchange procedure, etc.
“This has subjected innocent people to hardships, uncertainty and anxiety.
“We are of the strong belief that ordinary people, especially in the North, will lose their hard-earned money through no fault of theirs.
“Government must be sensitive to the plight of the citizens to safeguard their interests in all areas.
“Insinuations by some political actors that the exercise is designed deliberately to fail, or cause chaos to sabotage the ongoing democratic process should not be allowed to be proven.”