The initiative at the twilight of the General Mohammadu Buhari’s administration to redesign the country’s currency, the Naira, has become a complex narrative characterized by intricate political undercurrents, scarcity hurdles, and the looming threat of diminishing national pride and identity.
This seeming bad state of the Naira coupled with its persistent devaluation against other major currencies is casting a shadow over the original objectives of the redesign policy. At a time in the early stages of the implementation of the policy, the new Naira was so scarce that Nigerians were buying the local currency just like other nations’ currencies. It was said that some families giving out their daughters in marriage insisted on payment of bride price in the new currency to the chagrin of the grooms’ families who were also negatively impacted by the scarcity of the new notes. What a paradox!
The most worrisome in this debacle is the recent ruling by a seven-man panel of the Supreme Court led by Justice John Okoro that the old currency remains a legal tender indefinitely, to exist side by side with the newly redesigned notes. This has thrown up another economic conundrum as Nigeria is perhaps, the only country in the world presenting two types of currencies of the same economic value as legal tender amid its scarcity.
But be it as it may, the critical questions begging for answers: what manner of economic blueprint is the APC government of President Bola Tinubu implementing? What is in this naira war that the APC government from the Buhari era to the present administration, cannot resolve to bring reprieve to the majority of people who continue to bear the brunt? I used war advisedly because the former Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele, is still in prison custody following an order of court as he is facing prosecution for “ economic crime” while in office. Why is the APC going to court against the policy of its past administration? What has changed in the philosophy of the party that makes it difficult to reconcile existing policies of the past administration and the present?
While President Tinubu during his inauguration had hinted of continuing with the programmes of his predecessor, the persistent naira crisis without a substantive policy to address the challenges has also cast a shadow of doubt on the sincerity of this government.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced last year the redesign of 200, 500 and 1,000 naira notes, and planned to end the use of the old notes by January 31, 2023.
But acute scarcity of the new notes made the January 31 deadline impracticable, and prompted the bank, with the approval of President Muhammadu Buhari, to extend the legal tender status of the old notes till February 10.
On February 3, three state governments – Kaduna, Kogi, and Zamfara, all APC states citing the hardship the continued scarcity of naira notes brought to their people, sued the Federal Government at the Supreme Court for a reversal of the policy.
Days later, the court issued an interim order suspending the implementation of the deadline set by the Federal Government and directed that the old and new notes should continue to circulate pending the resolution of the case.
In spite of the ruling by the apex court, the CBN maintained that the old notes had stopped being legal tender after the February 8 deadline while the scarcity of the new notes persisted bringing about lots of hardship on the citizens with several reports of loss of lives.
In defiance to the Supreme Court’s order, Mr Buhari on February 16 restored the validity of the old N200 notes, insisting that the N500 and N1000 notes had ceased to be legal tender.
This defiance stand of the Buhari administration occasioned the rise of the number of plaintiffs to nine after six states were added to the three initial plaintiffs during the hearing of the case on February 22, three days to the national elections held on February 25.
The biting cash crunch featured as a major issue in the lead-up to the elections, which many feared could derail the process.
The redesign of a country’s national currency extends beyond aesthetics. It involves a strategic blend of cultural representation, economic considerations, and technological advancements. Moreso, the design of a nation’s currency is more than a utilitarian exercise in functionality; it is a symbolic representation of its identity and pride.
The politics surrounding the Naira notes redesign and the persistent scarcity of the currency has become a pivotal factor in shaping the nation’s collective psyche and potentially undermining the very essence of national pride and identity.
To be continued
