Reasons Behind Currency Redesign Policy-Says Mallam Nasir El-Rufai
Reasons Behind Currency Redesign Policy-Says Mallam Nasir El-Rufai
The Executive Governor of Kaduna State has expressed deepest regret at the needless suffering the citizens are going through as a result of the prolonged fuel shortage and the difficulties occasioned by the so-called ” Currency Redesign” policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Mallam Nasir El-Rufai made the disclosure during media chat to address the unprecedentedly cruel situation people and their livelihoods have been thrown into by the decisions, actions and interactions of the Federal Government of Nigeria.
He said while publicly supporting what appeared to be a beneficial policy, himself and other colleagues have innocently engaged privately with the President and leadership of the Central Bank of Nigeria to review the implementation of the policy, in order to reduce its negative impact on the lives and livelihoods of the people and eventually end up the pain being inflicted on citizens.
He noted that in the absence of any progress to modify implementation on the part of the architects, himself and other colleagues were forced to make it known to the public, with the concerns and demand that the suffering must stop.
He expressed great sadness over the suffering the victims of these mindless policies, who elected them are going through every day.
His words: “It is clear that their welfare is being threatened. Many people have been left in a situation where the money they put in banks has been confiscated, depriving them of the ability to buy food and basic necessities. The traders can not sell as much as they used to due to the fact that their customers have no access to their hard-earned money.
” We have been officially informed that the currency redesign policy is to reduce money laundering and render useless stashes of high denomination Naira that many politicians and public officers have accumulated through corruption and other illicit activities.
As earlier stated, we are fully in support of such a policy and we made this public from the beginning”.
“However, it is important to note that. myself and other colleagues had privately expressed concerns about the timing of the currency design policy and the unrealistic timeline for its implementation.
Mallam Nasir El-Rufai further disclosed that during official briefings to the President, the Central Bank of Nigeria alluded to the fact that the policy also targets politicians, who have accumulated a huge war chest for vote buying during the elections.
Meanwhile, it is now clear that the President has been deceived by the Central Bank of Nigeria and some elements in his government into buying into this overarching narrative, in the name of ensuring free and fair elections in 2023.
Besides, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, noted that, “It is important to know that contrary to the public pronouncements and apparent good intentions, this policy was conceived and sold to the President by officials, who completely lost out in the Gubernatorial and Presidential Primaries of the APC in June 2022.
