Since the directive was given by CBN and FED concerning the change in Nigeria currency which was announced given deadline day to be January 31 with the old naira notes of N200, N500 and N1000 will stop to be later tender with the hope that they would be replaced with new redesigned notes. Later the deadline day was postponed to February 10. Ever since that day, there has been slow down in businesses and this has caused a lot of hardship due to the fact that citizens couldn't get old of the new currency notes that replaced he old ones.
People were given deadline day line days to deposit or get rid of their old naira note of N200, N500 and N1,000. Though couple days ago, decision was made by the President of Nigeria to allow N200 resume from the old naira notes as legal tender. During this period of transition and exercise, Nigerians have experienced lot of hardship and slow down in businesses plus being unable to transact with cash at hand currency. This serves at an advantage because the policy was made to improve internet banking and encourage cashless policy. It's not that people do not have access to their money, the problem most of us are facing is that only few are familiar with internet banking and few people deviate from cashless policy.
For example like my Landlady who deals with selling her goods through cash at hand policy has improved from that to accepting transfer policy to transact, though to her daughter's account number but the only problem she's facing is that she's unable to withdraw this money restock goods into her business. She couldn't make transfer when she buys good from the wholesalers in the Market. Unless if her daughter follows her to the market to make those transfers. The funniest thing is, some business owners so not want to take transfer due to lot traffic jam while transacting with network issue.
So these are issues we are passing through right now but the CBN Governor in person of Governor Emefiele when he was interviewed, he said he said he knows that this issue is causing a short pain which he believed it's going to be bring a long time gain to the masses. How? It's believed that the reason for this redesign policy is to fight corruption during and after election. Also, they want to curb the issue of vote buying during the fought coming election with the believe that some politicians have stock up old naira to be used as weapon to buy people's vote during vote during the next general election.
In whichever way, whatever he came maybe, we hope that this exercise will surely bring a long time gain. Maybe it would allow people to vote their mind. Mind you, it's believed that the old naira N500 and N1000 have been the denominations that have been mostly stock up which was why the old N200 was reversed back into the Nigeria legal tender system.