Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria CBN,Godwin Emefiele,has clarified reports surrounding the capacity of the apex bank to print more new currency notes in the country.
He said reports blaming the current challenge in the distribution of the newly redesigned Naira banknotes on shortage of printing materials at the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company Plc was misleading.
Spokesman of the apex bank,Osita Nwasinobi, who conveyed the clarification in a statement on Saturday,said at no time did the CBN governor made such statement during his presentation to the National Council of State at its meeting on Friday, February 10, 2023.
He quoted his boss as saying that he only told the meeting that the NSPMC was working on printing all denominations of the Naira to meet the transaction needs of Nigerians.
According to him,while the CBN appreciates the concerns shown by all stakeholders about the distribution of the new Naira notes, “we are alarmed at the extent to which vested interests are attempting to manipulate facts and pitch the public against the bank.”
“We also wish to restate that the NSPMC has the capacity and enough materials to produce the required indent of the Naira.The bank, therefore, wishes to appeal to the public to disregard the said report and exercise more restraint, even as we work assiduously to increase the circulation of the new notes in the country,” he added.
He also faulted a particular voice note trending on the social media alleging that the CBN planned to shut down some banks,in a particular geopolitical region of the country.
The spokesman said there was no such plan and that the claims were illogical and do not comply with the workings of the Nigerian banking system.
He added:“The public is therefore advised to ignore such recordings as they do not represent the policy thrust of the CBN and are only the desperate attempts of persons bent on inciting the public against the bank”