• The Central Bank of Nigeria has revealed how Nigerians can land in serious trouble handling the new naira notes
• The Apex bank in a tweet revealed various forms of abuse of the naira and how offenders will be dealt with
• In fact, the CBN has partnered with the EFCC, Nigeria Police Force and other security agencies to further deal with abusers of the naira notes

The Central Bank of Nigeria has confirmed that money bouquet is now a form of currency abuse.

The CBN in a post shared on its official Twitter handle on Friday, February 10th, made this disclosure and highlights five other ways the new naira notes can be abused.

How the naira notes can be abused

In the tweet sighted by Legit.ng, the CBN list the forms of naira abuse as;

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1. Spraying
2. Selling
3. Money Bouquet
4. Squeezing and
5. Defacing of the naira notes.

CBN tasks Nigerians

The Apex bank urged the citizens to report cases of naira abuse in the country with the post which reads,

“It is your civic duty to protect the Naira. Report Naira abuse today.”

#StopNairaAbuse #RespectTheNaira #BePatriotic

The bank also put toll-free hotlines for Nigerians to reach their agents and call to report such activities.

Punishment for those who abuse the naira notes

According to the Central Bank of Nigeria, anyone that abuses the naira will be punished under the law in different ways.

1. First, the person will be fined
2. Secondly, the abuser of the naira might be jailed
3. Thirdly, the person might be fined and imprisoned at the same time

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Agencies that partner with CBN to deal with offenders of the new naira notes

The agencies that the CBN disclosed would deal with those who abuse the naira include, The Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU).

What the CBN law says

Section 21 (3) of the CBN act 2007 (as amended) says “to spray, dance or to step on the naira or any note that is issued by the bank during social events or other things that constitute abuse and defacing of the naira and will be punishable under the fines or imprisonment or both”.

Another section is the section 21 (4) which states that, “It is an offence that is punishable under sub-section (1) of this section for any person to hawk, sell or otherwise trade the naira notes, coins or any other note that the bank issued”.

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CBN warns Nigerians

The apex bank has sent a strong warning to Nigerians, particularly those who attend social functions, that they should not try to disrespect the naira else, they will be arrested by law enforcement agencies.

Supreme Court Takes Another Crucial Decision in Case Against CBN’s New Naira Policy

Emerging reports have confirmed that the Supreme Court on Wednesday, February 15 adjourned the case over the CBN policy on naira swap.

As reported by Channels TV, the apex court adjourned proceedings until Wednesday, February 22.

Recall that at the previous court session, the Supreme Court gave a ruling against the stipulated deadline for the usage of the naira note communicated by the CBN to the public.

Again, Buhari Meets Tinubu As Supreme Court Gives New Directive to CBN

President Muhammadu Buhari met with Bola Tinubu, the presidential torchbearer of the All Progressives Congress (APC), at the presidential villa on Wednesday, January 15.

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According to The Punch, reliable presidential sources disclosed that the meeting was held at Buhari’s official residence, which was why Buhari arrived late at the Federal Executive Council meeting for over 40 minutes.

It was reported that the president arrived at the council chamber at about 10:40am, about an hour behind the schedule.

Source: Legit.ng