Buhari had on November 23, 2022, unveiled redesigned N200, N500, and N1,000 notes and the Central Bank of Nigeria immediately fixed January 31 as the date for the expiration of the old notes.

The Sokoto State Chapter of the Muslim Rights Concern has appealed to the Federal Government to extend the deadline for the expiration of old naira notes by at least two weeks.

The PUNCH reported that the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), on November 23, 2022, unveiled redesigned N200, N500, and N1,000 notes and the Central Bank of Nigeria immediately fixed January 31 as the date for the expiration of the old notes.

Reacting, MURIC chairman, Muhammad Aliyu, in a statement on Friday, said the January 31 deadline set by the Federal Government had almost grounded businesses in Sokoto, Kebbi, and Zamfara states because of people’s refusal to accept the old naira notes in commercial transactions out of fear of possible inability to deposit the notes in commercial banks.

The statement continued, “Many filling stations and other essential services providers also closed, because most of their customers come with old naira notes and they are not sure whether they could be able to deposit same to the bank.

“This has currently made life more difficult for ordinary citizens. Many Nigerians have lamented the nonavailability and scarcity of new notes, this is because banks, up till today, still give out the old naira notes to customers with the deadline only a few days away.

“Sequel to the foregoing, we appeal to the Federal Government to reconsider its decision by extending the 31st January 2023 deadline for the expiration of old naira notes by at least two weeks to enable Nigerians to swap their old naira with the new naira notes.

“We also call on the security agencies particularly the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit to closely monitor how commercial bank managers handle the new naira notes they receive from Central Bank of Nigeria, which the apex bank has been consistently insisting are readily available at the vaults nationwide and ready for collection. We call on Nigerians to remain peaceful and stop panicking about the money swap.”