Residents and police in Nigeria claimed on Wednesday that furious bank clients torched tires and blocked roadways in protest of the lack of local currency.

Due to a lack of new notes, banks are short on cash and ATM withdrawals, and some businesses won’t take old naira notes. This has caused long lines, angry customers, and a stop to normal business operations.

The shortage of funds comes as Nigeria gets ready for a presidential election at the end of the month of February.

To combat inflation and counterfeiting and promote a cashless society, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) claimed it had redesigned the higher denomination notes (the 200, 500, and 1,000 naira bills).

Early on Wednesday, police in Oyo State reported that protests had broken out in certain areas of Nigeria

Angry bank customers protested in the areas around Dupe, Mokola, Ogunpa, Apata, and Iwo Road, and according to local media reports, two people were killed in clashes during riots last week in the city, setting the stage for this week’s demonstration.

People in Nigeria’s transportation industry and informal economy rely heavily on cash payments rather than mobile banking apps.

The central bank said that their policy would stop people from paying cash ransoms to kidnappers and bandits and get rid of fake and extra naira in the economy. 

But some state governments have sued the central bank, asking the court to halt the policy and let Nigerians use both the old and new notes until the banks can supply enough cash.

Source – Tru News Report

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