Deposit Money Banks have begun to ration the disbursements of old N1,000 and N500 notes to their customers amid uncertainty over whether the Central Bank of Nigeria will release the old notes in its custody.
This came about 24 hours after the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, announced that old N1,000, N500 and N200 notes remained legal tender.
But despite the CBN’s statement on Monday night, the Nigeria Labour Congress on Tuesday insisted on the seven-day ultimatum it gave the Federal Government to end the cash crunch.
The apex bank’s position came on the heels of several weeks of confusion over the legal status of the old currencies amid a series of Supreme Court judgments in a suit between some state governments and the Federal Government.
The declaration by the CBN was expected to put an end to the scarcity of old and new naira notes that had inflicted pain on Nigerians but findings by The News providers on Tuesday revealed that the naira crisis might not be over soon.
Investigations by our correspondents revealed that banks were rationing old notes to their customers via over-the-counter payments with a few lenders loading their Automated Teller Machines.
But News providers findings revealed that the majority of the lenders in Lagos, Abuja, Ogun, Kwara and other states were paying only N5,000 to each customer over the counters, while a few banks paid N10,000 only.
Further findings indicated that only a few banks loaded their ATMs and most of them were disbursing only N5,000.
Top bank executives revealed that most banks were paying what was left in their vaults, having sent a major chunk of old naira deposits to the CBN several weeks ago.
Other officials said lenders were also paying customers from little fresh deposits made by their customers.
Due to the naira scarcity, Wema Bank at Ilupeju, Lagos placed a limit on its ATM withdrawals from other banks’ cards and was dispensing only old naira notes.
When News providers visited the branch, the bank’s customers were able to withdraw only N10,000 with Wema Bank’s cards, while other banks’ customers could withdraw only N4,000 only.
At the Access Bank branch on CMD Ikosi Road, Lagos, customers were asked to generate a code from the CBN portal before they could be allowed to deposit.
They said this was mandatory although the CBN had declared old notes legal tender.
One of the bank officials who attended to our correspondent said, “We are paying the old notes but if you want to deposit them, you must go and generate the pin from the CBN portal.”
A visit to the First Bank branch at Mazamaza along Lagos-Badagry Expressway revealed that the bank had started dispensing the old notes via over-the-counter withdrawals.
At the Union Bank branch also in Mazamaza, the situation was the same.
The branches of United Bank for Africa, Access Bank, and Fidelity Bank at Oshodi in Lagos also dispensed old notes to their customers, though they had long queues.
At the Fidelity Bank branch, one of their three Automated Teller Machines was dispensing old N1,000 notes.
A customer, who collected the old notes from the ATM, Helen Orji, expressed relief.
She said this was the first time that she was able to collect cash from an ATM.
“It’s a major relief. PoS charges are killing. I wanted to buy baby formula on Monday, so I went to collect N5,000 and was given N4,000. It wasn’t enough for what I wanted to buy. To be able to go back to normal is a relief.”
Meanwhile, when a bus conductor plying the Mile 2-Oshodi route on Tuesday attempted to refuse the old notes, his passengers revolted and started handing him old N500 and N1,000 notes. He backed down and accepted the old notes.
A businesswoman, Omolayo Shittu, who went to buy fabrics at Oshodi on Tuesday told our correspondent that traders had started accepting the old notes.
She said, “They are collecting the old notes and giving them out. A PoS lady, who was telling someone she had only old notes, nearly got slapped as the traders insisted that there was nothing like old money or new money.
“I have called my shop and told them to start collecting the old notes.”
On Tuesday, banks disburse old notes along the Alagbole-Akute axis, our correspondent visited three banks – First, Bank First City Monument Bank and UBA. While all three banks were disbursing the old naira notes over the counter to customers, only FCMB had loaded their Automated Teller Machines with cash.
Meanwhile, traders and supermarkets around the axis had begun to accept the old notes from customers, even though some of them still exercised caution by insisting that they would not accept any old notes until the uncertainty surrounding it dissipates in the coming days.
Transport operators in the area, on the other hand, remained firm in their rejection of the old notes.
A tricycle operator, who identified himself as Damilare, told our correspondent that many of the transport operators were still circumspect about accepting the old notes because they had yet to regain wide acceptance among the general public.
Damilare said, “It’s risky. Some people are collecting, some people are still not collecting. I don’t want to collect it because I may not be able to spend it.”
Meanwhile, the NLC has reiterated its resolve to direct workers to stay away from the office if the Federal Government failed to address the cash scarcity and fuel shortage in the country.
The congress stated this in a communiqué issued on Tuesday after the inaugural meeting of its Central Working Committee in Abuja on Monday.
The NLC President, Joe Ajaero, had on Monday, told labour correspondents at the opening session of the meeting that the union would direct workers to stay at home if the Federal Government failed to resolve the cash crunch and fuel scarcity within seven days.
But a few hours after the NLC gave the ultimatum, the CBN which had shunned the Supreme Court judgment on the new naira notes, directed banks to accept and dispense the old denominations.
Notwithstanding the new development, the congress in a statement on Tuesday said it might compel its members to withdraw their services if the government failed to make cash available within seven days.
The communiqué signed by Ajaero read, “In the period under review, three major issues have engaged the attention of the nation. They are presidential and national assembly elections; scarcity of PMS (petrol) and redesigning of the naira notes and its aftermath.
“The CWC noted that elections have been held and we have made our broad observations in an earlier statement. It reiterated its earlier statement that those with issues with the outcome of the election utilise the court to seek redress.
The union accused the state of refusing to implement previous agreements reached between the state government and trade unions since 2021; 20 months’ salary arrears owed to some workers stigmatised as ghost workers; declaration of 11,000 workers in the state as ghost workers and diversion of their salaries and vandalisation of congress office and equipment by hoodlums allegedly recruited by the state government, among other allegations.
Source:Punch
