…Says it’s Still Legal Tender Till December 31
Nasarawa State Governor, Engineer Abdullahi Sule, has called on the people of the state to continue to accept the old 500 and 1000 naira notes, following directives from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Engineer Sule made the call shortly after meeting with bank managers at the Government House, on Tuesday.
According to the Governor, the meeting was prompted by the statement issued by the CBN, directing banks to accept and disburse the old 500 and 1000 naira notes, in line with the Supreme Court judgement.
He said his administration became worried following the loses suffered by farmers in the state, who couldn’t transport their produce to the market because of the prevailing scarcity of money.
On whether the banks operating in the state have sufficient old 500 and 1000 naira notes to disburse, Engineer Sule said it’s too early to ascertain that, but that people should begin to accept the available old naira notes which are still legal tender till December this year.
“I am using this opportunity to call on the people, because people are not sure, they are thinking it’s fake news, now that we have called the banks and the banks have assured that the instruction came from the central bank, I am calling on our people in Nasarawa State to continue to accept the old notes because they are still legal tender and valid until December this year,” he stated.
The Governor added that he met with the bank managers in order to find out whether they have sufficient old 500 and 1000 notes to circulate, in a bid to alleviate the suffering of the people who mostly spend the night at bank premises.
