Against the backdrop of heightened 2023 electoral activities, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has warned against conversion of Naira to foreign currency and unauthorized movement of funds for electioneering purposes.
The CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, alluded to the growing negative trend while speaking at Tuesday’s post-Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting briefing.
Making further clarifications the CBN Director, Corporate Communications Department, Mr. Osita Nwanisobi, in a chat with newsmen in Lagos, Wednesday, explained that it was expedient following attempts by persons to deliberately misrepresent the import of Mr. Emefiele’s caution on electioneering spending by the political class.
According to Nwanisobi, the warning by the CBN Governor was to those who sought to convert the Naira from their accounts into foreign exchange for election campaign and not those who seek to exchange the currency for legitimate purposes such as payment for tuition and other personal expenses.
Reiterating the Bank’s position, he said the CBN also frowned at the conduct of unauthorized movement of funds within and outside the country and would use tools at its disposal to check the movement of illicit funds.
While maintaining that the Bank, in line with its mandate, had discretionary power to prevent persons from conducting unauthorized transactions, Nwanisobi said the CBN was within its statutory limits to mop up the excess liquidity in the vaults of the institutions its regulates, so they do not get involved in speculative activities.
He therefore urged Bank customers not to get involved in unauthorized movement of funds for currency conversion in order not to fall foul of the extant laws of the land.
Nwanisobi also admonished Nigerians to be more patriotic as it relates to the Naira, noting that it is the duty of every citizen to support the CBN in preserving the intranational value of the Naira.
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