The Senate has condemned the act of hawking and selling new naira notes, coins or any notes issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Adopting a motion sponsored by Senator Mao Ohuabunwa (Abia North) titled “Urgent need to end the illicit trade in freshly minted naira notes”, the Senate urged the Central Bank of Nigeria, to as a matter of urgency, enforce compliance with the provisions of section 21 of the CBN Act, 2007.
The Senate also mandated the CBN to strengthen its system that audits the process of collation, processing and disposing of defaced and mutilated notes.
The Upper Chamber urged the CBN to investigate the allegation that commercial bank officials do in fact sell new naira notes to illegal peddlers.
Ohuabunwa said every country’s currency is a national treasure deserving of a level of dignity and Nigeria naira is not an exception.
He stressed that throughout the country from Lagos to Sokoto, Kano, Enugu, Port Harcourt and even the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), a huge illicit industry has been built around trading on fresh minted naira notes by certain individuals who engage in the touting and hawking of the nation’s treasure and legal tender.
He said the situation calls to question the integrity of the overall system of the Apex bank, especially on the procedures it deploys in the dispensing of new Maria note and the mopping up of old currencies.
According to him, the illegal and criminal transaction of new Naira notes for many decades has its negative impact on the both the integrity of the custodians, the national treasure, the monetary and fiscal policies.
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