The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) office in Marina, Lagos, was fully packed yesterday, 17th February 2023
The crowd consists of people attempting to exchange old currencies in accordance with President Muhammadu Buhari’s directive.
Buhari declared in his national broadcast on Wednesday that old N500 and N1000 notes were no longer legal tender, directing Nigerians to take the notes to the CBN and other designated locations.
He also directed the Central Bank of Nigeria to recirculate old N200 notes until April 10.
Buhari’s remark drew criticism, particularly from some governors of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Kaduna state Governor Nasir El-Rufai stated that old N500 and N1000 notes are still legal tender in his state until the Supreme Court rules otherwise.
Meanwhile, officials are struggling to keep the crowd at the Lagos CBN office under control. They asked depositors to take the old notes to their commercial banks at one point, but the people refused.
Commenting on the situation, a social media user identified as Malik stated that his brother arrived at CBN in Marina around 6 a.m. and was number 420 in the queue.
He also stated that it was difficult for many people to generate the code required for depositing money on the CBN website.
