Almost one week after the Supreme court judgement, there is growing confusion in Enugu state as many residents have continued to reject the old naira notes.
This is in spite of the Supreme court judgement that the old N200,N500 and N1000 will remain legal tender untill December 31, 2023.
However, WITHIN NIGERIA reporter who went round some major markets in the state gathered that most of the traders are not favourably disposed to accepting the old naira notes.
At Ogige Main market Nsukka, one of the traders Friday Ezea told our reporter that he preferred cash transfer to old naira notes.
According to Mr. Ezea who deals on electronic and electrical appliances “if you come to buy item from me, if you don’t have physical cash, you can do cash transfer. I prefer it to old naira notes.”
Explaining he said that “this is because you don’t know if accept the old notes, the next person will also accept them. Again, at this moment, old notes is not something you just enter inside bank and pay into your account. You have to fill some forms from CBN and stuffs like that. So, depositing the old notes at this moment is a rigorous process which I am not prepared to go through now.”
At Ogbete main market, Enugu, majority of traders are still not favourably disposed to accepting the old notes.
One of the traders who gave his name as Hillary Ikem explained that “at this moment, I can’t accept old naira notes. If you don’t have physical cash, no problem, you can do transfer to my account. More over, many people don’t accept it.
“So, if I collect the old notes, who will accept it from me? Why do I take it to? I know that very soon, many traders will start accepting it but for this week and probably beyond, no old naira notes for me.”
Mr. Ikem, a patent medicine dealer stressed that he is not happy with the way the Federal Government is carrying out the naira redesign policy, which according to him had led to many citizens suffering so much.
However, at Nkwo Ibagwa-Aka, Igbo-Eze South local government area of Enugu state, none of the traders accept old naira notes.
One of them, Mrs. Charity Onyia who spoke to our reporter stated that ” I can’t accept the old notes for now. This is because, government can change the policy overnight and my hard earned money will become useless just like that.”
According Mrs. Onyia who deals on food stuffs, ” I lost huge amount of money trying to save my money when the deadline for expiration of old passed on January 31,2023. So, I can’t accept old notes now until it becomes clear to me that it is now used as legal tender.”
However, WITHIN NIGERIA also gathered that in some parts of Enugu metropolis and Nsukka urban, many banks like Fidelity were paying their customers with old naira like N500 notes.
How long this ding ding affair will last remains open to conjecture as many banks have continued to record huge turn up of customers everyday, seeking for withdrawal of their money.
