By Aisha Gambo
The National Orientation Agency (NOA) in Kaduna State has urged residents to take their old naira notes to banks before the Jan. 31 deadline set by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The state NOA Director, Alhaji Zubair Galadima gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Kaduna.
“People are urged not to wait until the deadline before they deposit their old notes in the bank to avoid rush.
“The deadline is for real, anybody who fails to do so will lose his or her money”, he said.
The director explained that the redesigning of the naira was to eliminate the prevalence of counterfeit notes in the system, adding that the new notes have more security features.
“The redesigning of the currency notes is long overdue as the period stipulated for change of currency is five to eight years,” he added.
Galadima-Soba also said those hoarding the currency until it got spoilt now have no alternative than to take their money to bank.
According to him, the new fiscal policy will also encourage Nigerians to embrace Internet banking, thereby boosting the cashless economy policy being pursued by the CBN.
He said that the CBN has provided enough and adequate currency to banks, urging people not to be afraid to deposit their old naira notes.
Galadima-Soba, however, said that people should not expect to get the equivalent of what they deposited at once, adding that they would be able to withdraw the remaining subsequently.
“CBN has also suspended the charge for deposit no matter the amount; it has been waved for this period.
“As to the issue of people residing in rural areas where banks are not available, they are encouraged to use approved money agents to exchange their money”, he said.
The director stated that the NOA had started mobilizing, educating and sensitizing Nigerians, especially at the grassroots, on the new naira redesign policy of the CBN.
“NOA has instructed it’s Community Orientation and Mobilization Officers to ensure that the information reach all wards,” he added.
He said that the agency would pay advocacy visits to traditional and religious leaders, markets women, civil society organizations, youth groups on the issue.
The director added markets and motor parks would be visited while road walk and motorised public address system would be used to address the public in their local dialect.(NAN)
