Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, has assured that the value of old of 200, 500, and 1,000 naira notes will still be redeemed even after they have ceased to be legal tender by February 10.
Emefiele, who spoke when he appeared before the House of Representatives ad hoc committee on the cashless policy of the apex bank on Tuesday, said the redemption was in tandem with Section 20 (3) of the CBN act, noting that the essence of the exercise was to mop up the old notes in circulation.
He said the CBN stood side by side with the House of Representatives on the position of the law.
The assurance from the CBN governor doused the heightened tension amongst the members of the Committee as they expectedly heaved sighs of relief.
In his reaction, the chairman of the committee, Ado Doguwa, who was visibly elated by the remarks, thanked the CBN governor, saying that had Emefiele given the assurance earlier, there wouldn’t have been any need for the meeting.
Recall that the House of Representatives had threatened to invoke the provisions of section 89(1)(d) of the Constitution by issuing a warrant of arrest on Tuesday to compel Emefiele to appear.
