The Governor Abdullahi Ganduje has accused the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) of crippling the Kano State’s economy by refusing to release new naira notes to commercial banks operating in the state in the last four days.

The state Commissioner for Information and Internal Affairs, Malam Muhammad Garba, who made the assertion in a statement issued on Friday, February 17, 2023 alleged that since Monday, commercial banks in the state get zero allocation from the apex bank.

He said the prejudiced approach by the CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, in the implementation of the cashless policy, no matter the intentions, seem to be targeting Kano and its economy.

The state government said that given the daily volume of trade in the North’s commercial nerve centre, the CBN is starving commercial banks of the money supposed to be allocated to them.

Garba pointed out that the CBN, as an agency of the Federal Government, has from all indications been reduced to a tool to settle political scores by choosing a wrong time to force a policy on the people that could have been implemented at the appropriate time in the past.

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The commissioner noted that the general populace in the state has been subjected to unnecessary hardship by depriving them access to their hard-earned money, ostensibly to precipitate civil unrest that could lead to the postponement of the most awaited general election scheduled for next week.

He, however, said that the people of Kano, who are known for their peace-loving posture even in the face of provocation, have endured the hardship and called on them to not only continue with the spirit, but also come out en masse to exercise their franchise.

The commissioner also assured that the administration of Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje identify with them in this trying period and would do whatever it takes to see to the resolution of the present situation.

The Star