Politics
CURRENCY CHANGE? AT THIS TIME?

By Mahmud Jega
To folks old enough to remember the currency change exercise undertaken by the Buhari military government in 1984, Central Bank of Nigeria [CBN] Governor Godwin Emefiele’s announcement on Wednesday that the N200, N500 and N1000 notes will cease to be legal tender at the end of January next year was the sudden revival of a nightmare. He said new notes will be introduced in mid-December to replace the old notes.
CBN and government might well have a good reason to change our currency notes. Emefiele said 80% of our notes are held outside the banking sector, which he said triggered inflation and weakened the naira against foreign currencies. This was more or less the same reason that Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquarters, the late Major General Tunde Idiagbon, gave when he suddenly made a radio and TV broadcast one evening in April 1984, closed all borders and announced the currency change. Emefiele gave the added reason that kidnappers, bandits and terrorists are holding a lot of money which they got through ransom payments. He also expressed hope, guardedly, that the measure could lead to a naira appreciation.
In Nigeria, a currency change exercise has to be undertaken with the utmost secrecy, otherwise it loses its fangs because the targeted people will rush and deposit the monies in banks. Buhari/Idiagbon’s 1984 exercise was so secretive that the 20 other members of the Supreme Military Council [SMC] were caught unawares. One SMC member’s wife was caught with a lot of money on her farm. The new currencies were printed abroad, flown into the country by Airforce planes before Idiagbon made his shock announcement. Emefiele borrowed a leaf, with slight modification.
Bank of England recently announced the introduction of new notes and coins with pictures of King Charles but said it will be a very gradual process. Monies with pictures of Queen Elizabeth will exist side by side with the new ones and only mutilated notes will be replaced over an indefinite period. Not so here, where Emefiele has set a severe six weeks’ period from mid-December to phase out old notes, obviously because the Brits’ purpose is very different from our own.
The 1984 exercise was one of the most traumatic events in the history of Nigeria. Some people at the time likened it to the civil war. All Nigerian towns were turned upside down as thousands of people lined up outside every bank trying to deposit and, if possible, withdraw some money. Queues outside banks made the current fuel queues look like toys. People ate and slept in the queues; no one dared left his place in the queues because it took so long to arrive there.
Meanwhile, all trading grinded to a halt because traders will not accept old currency, even though there was a month to go before it became illegal tender. By the time new notes emerged from the banks, a two-tier price system developed in the economy. If you come to buy something the trader will ask you, “Are you paying with new or old currency?”
Right now however, the biggest question is, why did CBN spring this trauma upon us in the middle of a general election campaign? Emefiele said the Federal Executive Council [FEC] approved it. Including the timing? Why not wait until after the election at least? The campaigns will be turned upside down in the next few weeks, right until election eve, as people abandon everything else and scramble to change their money.
While our cities and towns now have a lot more banks than there were in 1984, people living in the rural areas will suffer more because they don’t have as many banks. The rural economy is still mostly cash based, hence they have the biggest challenge of deposing old money in the banks.
The timing is very bad. It is remarkable that the Federal Executive Council approved such a potentially disruptive and traumatic event in the middle of a general election campaign.
Mahmud Jega
26th October, 2022
Politics
Tinubu Assures Investors Nigeria Is Open for Business, Welcomes Coca-Cola’s $1bn Plan
By Francis Wilfred
President Bola Tinubu has assured local and international investors that Nigeria remains open for business, saying his administration is implementing reforms aimed at creating a more predictable, competitive and investment-friendly environment.
Speaking through the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume, at the 75th anniversary celebration of the Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC) in Abuja on Monday, the President said the government is addressing key challenges facing businesses under the Renewed Hope Agenda.
“Our message to investors, both Nigerian and international, is clear: Nigeria is open for business,” Tinubu said,
He noted that reliable infrastructure, efficient logistics, access to foreign exchange, stable regulations and a supportive tax system are critical to attracting investment and expanding production.
According to Yomi Odunuga, the President said ongoing economic reforms are designed to build a more productive and competitive economy, reduce dependence on imports, strengthen local manufacturing and create jobs for Nigerians.
Tinubu welcomed the Coca-Cola System’s proposed $1 billion investment in Nigeria over five years, announced in 2024, describing it as a strong vote of confidence in the country’s economy.
He said the administration is focused not only on the volume of investment attracted but also on its impact on employment, skills development, technology transfer and local sourcing.
“We are interested not only in the amount of capital that comes into Nigeria, but in what that capital does here,” he said.
The President also praised NBC’s continued expansion of production capacity, including new production lines in Oyo and Kano states, describing such investments as vital to strengthening Nigeria’s industrial base.
He reaffirmed the government’s commitment to improving policies, infrastructure and regulations to support businesses, while urging the private sector to complement government efforts through investment, innovation and job creation.
Tinubu further highlighted the importance of human capital development, commending NBC’s Supply Chain Academy for training over 1,400 young Nigerians and supporting women’s empowerment and community development initiatives.
He urged investors to take advantage of opportunities across Nigeria, expressing confidence that the country can build a stronger economy driven by local production, exports and globally competitive industries.
Politics
Kano Governorship: Accord Party Governorship Candidate Gashash Getting More Endorsement From Kano Electorates.
By Jabiru Hassan.
The movement for Democratic Protection and good governance (MDSG) declared it's full support to the Accord Party Governorship Candidate Ambassador Dr. Mukhtar Gashash in the forthcoming general elections.
In a chat with our correspondent in kano, the national president of the movement, Alhaji Dauda Mohammed Ali, stated that it is time for the people of kano state to bring new steward who is seriously planning to transform the state with highest regard.
He expressed his confidence that Ambassador Dr Mukhtar Gashash will do his best to ensure that kano state becomes more examplary at both sector without bias which is the task previous administrators failed to achieve.
Alhaji Dauda Mohammed Ali reiterated that " this time around, our movement is working day and night to make sure that Kano people mostly youths remained Committed to actualize real change in the state's politics, leadership and transformation under the Accord Party government".
He called on the people of kano state especially the eligible voters to vote Ambassador Dr Mukhtar Gashash due to his Transformation plans for the progress of kano state and it's citizens at both Urban and rural settlements.
Responding to a question about Accord party's strength in kano state, Dauda Mohammed Ali disclosed that in today's democracy, competent candidates should be tipped for an elective positions not the popularity of the political parties stressing that Ambassador Dr Mukhtar Gashash has been found to be the best option for kano state due to his track record on competency, transparency as a real democrat.
Politics
Caught in the middle: Ortom’s silent dance between two camps.
There are growing questions about where Mr. Samuel Ortom, a former Governor of Benue State and a prominent figure in the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), truly stands politically ahead of 2027.
Ortom was a key figure in the divisions within the PDP before the 2023 general elections and was widely associated with support for Mr. Peter Obi, who finished third in that contest. More recently, however, he has publicly expressed support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration.
The latest discussion began after a visit by Mr. Peter Obi to Benue State. Reports indicate that a vehicle said to belong to Ortom was used to receive Obi at the Air Force Base airport in Makurdi. It is not clear who authorized the use of the vehicle, and Ortom has not commented publicly on the matter.
During the same visit, Obi was reportedly prevented from travelling to Yelewata, where he had intended to condole with families affected by violence. Obi’s team attributed the blockage to supporters of Governor Hyacinth Alia.
The Governor’s spokesman, Sir Tersoo Kula, denied any involvement by the Governor. He suggested the incident may have been staged to damage the Governor’s reputation, or that it could have resulted from disagreements within Obi’s own support base.
Ortom has not issued a statement clarifying his position on the 2027 elections or on the vehicle in question. Attempts to reach him were unsuccessful at the time of reporting.
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