Residents of Lagos and Ogun states were left stunned yesterday as banks, retail outlets and even bus drivers rejected the old N200, N500 and N1,000 notes as a means of transaction in the new week .

This is coming after the Supreme Court had temporarily halted the move by the Federal Government to ban the use of the old naira notes from February 10, 2023.

A seven-member panel led by Justice John Okoro, halted the move in a ruling in an ex parte application brought by three northern states of Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara.

Investigations at the weekend revealed that the residents still transacted with the old notes despite the February 10 deadline of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) leaving many Nigerians thinking that the Court order meant that people were free to transact with the old notes.

With the CBN yet to react and state governors and analysts applauding the move by the apex court and further advising CBN on strategies to implement its new policy, many had interpreted the silence of the apex bank to mean consent.

But as commercial banks resumed on Monday, people who came to deposit their old notes could not do so as cashiers refused to accept them..

Similarly retail outlets, and supermarkets like Shoprite, Jumia and buses refused to accept the old notes.

Balkis Azeez, a bank customer who spoke to Daily Sun, said she could not deposit her N50,000 because her bank rejected the old notes. “I am currently confused as this money is meant for my last child who is not here in Lagos with me. His account was blocked and so he needed money to get some things and I had to send it to his other bank account only to be told by the cashiers that it would not be accepted as the deadline for accepting old notes had expired.

I actually felt she was joking only for her to keep a stern face saying it was a directive from headquarters. I do not even know what to do at this point”, she said.

With this development, many were seen making calls to their relatives and sales representatives, warning them not to accept the old notes from customers as banks no longer take in deposits with the notes.

A female banker, in one of the new generation banks at Egbeda, told our reporter that they got directives from the headquarters not to deposit the old notes.

“As at this morning, we were accepting the old notes but then we got directives from our headquarters around 9am or so that we should no longer accept the old notes. This is the main reason why we stopped”, she said.

When our reporter also visited the ATMs of the bank branches, there were groans and complaints among the people at the queue as the ATMs were not dispensing cash.

Meanwhile, traders and other individuals who are still in possession of the old notes have cried out to the CBN, asking that they be allowed to swap their hard-earned money.

Reacting to the development, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) advised the CBN to extend the February 10 deadline for the use of old naira notes if the difficulties in getting new notes persist.

Speaking via a telephone chat, the National Coordinator, Progressive Association of Nigeria, Boniface Okezie, said that it was high time the Presidency and the apex bank spoke out.

Okezie noted that the development is frustrating Nigerians and this could result in more tension ahead of the elections.

“I still cannot understand why a country with a President cannot speak up. The CBN also has been silent on this matter and this has led to the present confusion across the country. I understand that the CBN Governor and the President have been meeting but it is time for both parties to address the country so that we can move forward and concentrate on the upcoming elections. It is very sad to have a country in a mess like this, this is very disheartening”, Okezie lamented.

For his part, Partner/Senior Economist at SPM Professionals, Paul Alaje, had said the Supreme Court ruling will give the CBN and Commercial banks time to rethink and rejig their strategies.

Alaje, however, noted that the real challenge all along has been money supply while adding this has made the policy unattainable at this time.

“Maybe they (CBN) need to go back to their strategy table and come up with another solution because I doubt this judgement by the Supreme Court. I do not think so because the CBN had already said they have withdrawn 80 per cent of the old notes from circulation and so the judgement did not say the CBN should release the old notes into circulation and so what is available is just 20 per cent which is already here and the new notes that will circulate the economy and so the judgement has not really affected money supply”, Alaje had explained.

Meanwhile, many commercial banks, hospitals, and petrol stations in Osun State rejected the old naira notes.

Investigation revealed that the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) in Osogbo also rejected the old notes, turning customers who wanted to recharge their meters back.

Customers with old naira notes were left unattended to at the station road office of IBEDC in Osogbo.

It was also gathered that Osun State University Teaching Hospital also rejected the old notes, leaving patients in dilemma. Findings revealed that residents are still struggling to get the new notes as Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) in some banks were not dispensing money.

It was observed that some banks were also not allowing customers to enter the banks, claiming there was no cash to pay through the cantre as the action of the banks raised alarm to some traders and commercial drivers who were collecting the old notes to start rejecting it.

A source in one of the banks who pleaded anonymity said the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has not communicated officially to the banks.

He disclosed that lower currency was paid to the customers last week and the bank has been closing since the currency finished.

“We didn’t have the new note. We took our time to sort out the lower currency last week to pay the customers. We didn’t have any cash again. That is why we don’t allow customers to enter the banking hall.

“What we heard about the old note is that the CBN will be collecting it from individuals, that is why we have not been collecting it. There is no official communication to collect the old note from customers,” the source added. (Daily Sun: Text, excluding headline)

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