Two Nigerian state governors – Abdullahi Sule (Nasarawa) and Godwin Obaseki (Edo) – have decried federal government’s plan to reissue naira notes and the attendant hike in dollar rate after the greenback crossed N800 mark early in the week.
Governor Sule said the dollar rate is not making life any easier for the common man in Nigeria. According to him, the redesigned naira notes by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) have a role to play in the hike.
“I am extremely worried. But again, it takes you back really to understand, ‘Does it worry me?’ Of course, it worries me very badly. The common man is actually going through the heat during this period.
“In fact, when I saw it yesterday, I was shocked to see the naira going all the way to N818 for a dollar, ” Governor Sule told Channels TV.
Prime Business Africa had reported that Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, also spoke against the redesigned naira notes, and complained of the attendant scarcity.
Obaseki, who has a career in investment banking and founded Afrinvest, said the decision is not Nigeria’s priority, as it won’t reduce the price of foods in the market.
He said redesigning the naira notes has no basis in Economics, but merely a political ploy. The Governor said it won’t help the naira, as dollars has remained scarce.
“They say we should all bring our naira and give it to them because they want to change it for us. Is that our priority now?
“How does changing of currency reduce the price of food in the market? They say they want to change our currency and dollars are going higher every day. We can’t even see dollars again.
“I am an economist and I can tell you categorically that this policy by the CBN and Federal Government has no basis in economics. There is no reason to do this; this is purely political.” Governor Obaseki said.
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