CBN blames police, others for abuse of naira

The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, yesterday blamed the police and other law enforcing agencies for the continued abuse of the nation’s currency exhibited at social gatherings.
The CBN Deputy Governor (Operations), Tunde Lemo, said this at the four-day sensitisation workshop on the take-off of the cashlite policy in Ogun State, which commenced yesterday in Abeokuta, the state capital.
Lemo, who spoke through the CBN Deputy Project Lead, Shared Services Office, Abuja, Eme Eleonu, said the inability of the law enforcement agencies to arrest and prosecute any offender had hamper the fight against the abuse of the naira.
This is as the CBN deputy governor, who expressed optimism that the cashlite policy which would kick-off in Ogun and five other states on July 1 would create thousands of jobs for Nigerians, faulted the privatisation of the Nigeria Telecommunications Limited, NITEL, describing is as a big blunder.
Lemo said parts of the vital lubricant that could have tremendously aided the policy and made it work well were in the moribund NITEL.
He also said the apex bank could not play the role of law enforcement agencies by arresting those who ‘spray’ naira notes at parties and other social functions across the country.
The administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo had in 2007 signed a bill into law which criminalised all manners of abuse of the naira and prescribed a six-month imprisonment with an option of N50,000 fine or both for offenders.
Lemo, however, regretted that all the law enforcement agencies had not been able to prevent abuse of the nation’s currency since the law came into effect about six years ago.
He said: “CBN is a regulatory institution; it is not a law enforcement agency. You know it is criminal to spray money in Nigeria, yet nobody has been arrested by law enforcement agencies for spraying money.
“We can’t do the law enforcement agencies’ job. We can’t do the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC’s job. We are playing our role; let others play their own too…
“What we are doing is like a football game; the guy at the back cannot start struggling to go and score goals, he has to play his wing.
“The CBN is doing its job. However, other entities within the system and the same value chain have their roles to play even down to the individual level, and we expect those institutions to stand up and do their job. CBN cannot go out arresting people. We can’t do the job of law enforcement agencies; it is not part of our mandate.”
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