Governor Biodun Oyebanji of Ekiti State has urged residents to continue accepting old and new naira notes as legal tender in accordance with the Supreme Court’s ruling, which extended the validity of the N500 and N1000 old notes until December 31, 2023.
In a statement issued on Saturday by his Special Adviser on Media, Yinka Oyebode, titled “Oyebanji urges Ekiti residents to accept old naira notes,” the governor urged all businesses in Ekiti State to follow the law and accept the old naira notes.
He also urged banks to make the naira notes available in all of their branches and pay points, as well as all traders, business owners, service providers, okada riders, drivers, filling stations, petrol plants, supermarkets, schools, hospitals, and point-of-sale (POS) operators, to begin accepting the old notes immediately.
To do otherwise would be to defy the ruling of the country’s highest court and thwart government efforts to alleviate people’s hardship, he said.
While stating that the government will not hesitate to arrest and prosecute business owners found rejecting the old naira notes, the governor also warned that rejecting them is illegal for any business owner or service provider.
He expressed concern about complaints that many businesses in the state refused to accept old naira notes as payment.
Oyebanji said;
This is an appeal to all residents of Ekiti State to abide by the ruling of the Supreme Court, which provides a reprieve for the people by extending the validity date of the old naira notes till December 31.
The state government had joined other states to seek the intervention of the Supreme Court in reversing the new naira policy, which the states averred had inflicted excruciating pain and hardship on the people in addition to crippling economic activities.