Currency: Offenders abusing the Naira to bag 6-month imprisonment ―CBN

*The Central Bank of Nigeria, again, cautions consumers abusing the Naira to change their attitude towards proper handling of national currency

Isola Moses | ConsumerConnect

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has restated that anyone caught abusing the West African country’s national currency will be made to face the law by serving six months’ imprisonment with a fine of N50,000.

ConsumerConnect gathered Mrs. Uchenna Onyene of the Currency Operations Department of the Bankers’Bank, said this at the two-day ‘CBN Fair’ organised for bank users and customers.

The Bank also stated need for consumers of the Naira to change their attitude the handling of Nigerian currency.

Mrs. Onyene further noted that the Nigerian currency remains the pride of the country.

It must be kept clean all the time, she stated.

Onyene said: “CBN issued out currency clean, and it must be returned clean.”

The CBN top official as well condemned the attitude of spraying money in public events.

She observed with dismay that Igbos have been most guilty of this act.

Advising people to desist from such action, she said that it the attitude destroys the country’s currency.

Earlier at the event, Mr. Osita Nwanisobi, Director of Corporate Communications Department at CBN, said that the essence of CBN Fair is to sensitise bank customers and other stakeholders in the financial services sector.

Nwanisobi, represented by the Deputy Director of Corporate Communications, also stated that the forum was organised to acquaint consumers with the necessary information about the CBN’s monetary policies and activities in the economy.

He as well identified some of the policies to include ‘How to Handle Naira’, various payment platforms, consumer protection initiatives, and other development initiatives among others.

In regard to the Foreign Exchange (Forex) rate, the CBN Director of Coroporate Communications appealed to Nigerians to stop complaining about exchange rate.

He noted that it is only those countries that export their products that would have value in Naira and boast in exchange rate.

According to Nwanisobi, “if Nigerian exports more, the currency of the country will certainly rise.”

Describing the CBN programmes and interventionist initiatives as a live wire, he further disclosed that since ’70s, the country has restricted itself to producing a product, which is crude oil.

The Director expressed dismay that even when Nigeria does that, it does not have control of fixing the crude price in the international oil market.

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