Phrank Shaibu said the threat by some APC governors to close banks if they refused to accept the old notes has emboldened rioters to burn down commercial banks.
Phrank Shaibu, an aide to the Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, says the inciting remarks made by some governors of the All Progressives Congress (APC) are igniting violence across the country.
About 10 APC states have sued the federal government at the Supreme Courts over the ongoing cash crunch that has become a problem across the country because of the new naira policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The states are Kaduna, Kogi, Zamfara, Lagos, Katsina, Cross River, Ogun, Ekiti, Ondo, and Sokoto.
Two APC governors – Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna state and Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State – have rejected the federal government policy, urging banks in their respective states to accept the old naira notes or face sanctions.
In a statement on Monday, Mr Shaibu who is the Special Assistant on Public Communications to Mr Atiku, said that some APC governors’ inciting remarks in which they threatened to close banks if they refused to accept the old notes has emboldened rioters to burn down commercial banks.
He said “The president made it clear that the old N1,000 and N500 notes are no longer legal tender. Those who are dissatisfied with the president’s proclamation should go to court rather than resort to self-help. Two wrongs do not make a right.
“Governor Dapo Abiodun, who is the number one citizen of Ogun State, ought to know better. However, he has been threatening to revoke the C of O of banks that obey the President’s proclamation. This act of defiance has evoked rebellion, hence the riots and burning of banks in Sagamu, Abeokuta, and Mowe.
“In viral videos all over social media, agents of Governor Abiodun could be seen sharing the old notes in envelopes branded with the governor’s picture, convincing the supporters that the notes remain legal tenders contrary to the CBN policy.”
Mr Shaibu also supported the claims of the governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki, accusing the APC chieftain, Adams Oshiomhole, of sponsoring the riots in Benin, the state capital.
“Oshiomhole is one of the biggest critics of the naira redesign policy. It is not surprising that Governor Obaseki, who is the chief security officer of the state, has established that Oshiomhole is behind the riots. The APC really needs to stop provoking these riots,” he said.
Mr Shaibu also called on the Nigeria Police Force, the Secret State Services, and other security agencies to infiltrate the ranks of those staging riots with a view to identifying their sponsors.
“With elections less than five days away, the ultimate goal of the sponsors of these riots may be the postponement of elections. We commend the military and the police so far for curbing some of these riots.
“However, we call on them to go a step further by identifying their sponsors” he said.
Background
Many Nigerians have been finding it difficult to adjust to the CBN policy regarding the redesigning of the old naira notes of N200, N500, and N1,000 in recent months. This is in contrast to the nation’s poor distribution of the newly redesigned notes, which has led to long queues at some ATMs and high charges at Point of Sale (POS) centres.
In order to reduce public unrest, President Muhammadu Buhari during a live broadcast last week approved the continued use of the old N200 notes up until April.
Atiku, who had previously supported the policy when the CBN newly introduced it, however, took a new position on Monday in a post on his Facebook page, saying the policy has inflicted untold hardship on Nigerians.
The former vice president in the post had called on the CBN to, as a matter of urgency, allow commercial banks to join in the collection of the deposits of old N500 and N1000 notes.
While two PDP governors – Duoye Diri of Bayelsa State and Mr Obaseki – are in support of the policy, their counterpart in Sokoto State – Governor Aminu Tambuwal, has expressed his displeasure over the policy and its attendant disastrous consequences on ordinary Nigerians.
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