Naira Scarcity: Nigerians urge banks to dispense N100, N50 bills

 As the effects of the current cash crunch bite harder, Nigerians have called on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to prevail on commercial banks to dispense N100 and N50 notes to Nigerians.

They made the call in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Lagos.

Mr Benedict Chukwuweike, an accountant, said that dispensing the N100 and N50 notes would help solve the immediate challenge of access to the new naira notes.

Chukwuweike particularly noted that in countries like United States, the highest denomination mostly in circulation is $100.

He said that the country could emulate such countries as the issuance of more N500, N1000 bills becomes a problem.

According to him, the development will help to curb inflation and attract more value to the nation’s currency.

Also speaking, Mrs Eniola Gbadamosi, a Teacher, said that dispensing of the N100 and N50 bills should have been the alternative pending when issues surrounding the redesigned notes would be resolved.

According to her, the N100 and N50 bills have become valuable to her as the notes have helped her to cope with the naira crunch.

“I started gathering the N100 and N50 notes since January when the heat of the January 31st deadline enveloped the nation.

‘’Little did I know then, that the crunch will degenerate to what it is now. Today, my N100 and N50 notes have been very useful.

Miss Catherine Lawson, an unemployed youth, told NAN that she boarded a bus on Wednesday and was lucky to have the N100 and N50 notes on her.

Mrs Judith Chukwukadibia, a Lawyer, said that since the crisis started and those in the urban areas were crying for cash, she knew it would be worse in the rural areas.

“So, what I quickly did was to change my money into N50 notes which I sent to my parents in the village.

“The aim was to avoid pressure my parents will go through. I didn’t want them to be stranded. I am happy that the step has proved very helpful.

“I even did same to myself and have been very comfortable since the naira crunch started,” he said.

Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari has said that the old N200 note would remain a legal tender until April 10.

In a nationwide broadcast on Thursday, he said that the old and new N200 bills will exist side by side so as to ease the cash crunch.