New naira design a mistake, says Kwankwaso

The presidential candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, Rabiu Kwankwaso, on Friday, described the policy of the naira redesign policy Central Bank of Nigeria as a mistake that was not properly thought out.

He explained that the timing was a misfit as it dragged more Nigerians below the poverty line.

Speaking on Channels TV’s ‘The Verdict 2023’, the former Kano State Governor promised to extend the deadline till citizens are able to swap their currency without any problem.

He said, “I think the whole thing (naira redesign) was a mistake, especially the timing. Everything has time. We didn’t support the idea of the currency redesign at this critical time because this is the time we need peace and prosperity so that people can comfortably vote for the people of their choice.”

Kwankwaso, reminiscing on how his administration started e-payments in Kano State, stressed that a lot of groundwork was needed to make the economy cashless.

“If you are bringing this type of policy, you have to do a lot of groundwork. I have done this in Kano where we had to register 37 microfinance banks just to prepare for e-payment in Kano State. The idea should not be to punish the people but the way this was carried out, the government is only punishing people.

“We have always canvassed that the date is extended, which they later extended to ten days but that is also marginal with no effect. Our concern is on the poor,” he added.

When asked about INEC’s readiness for the general election, he prayed that the electoral commission was independent and without bias.

“I hope they are ready but we are concerned about what they did in Kano 2019. Our prayer is that they do the right thing this time,” he said.

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