Naira protest: Abiodun sues for peace, meets monarchs

Following the protests that rocked Abeokuta, Ogun State, on Tuesday, over cash crunch, Governor Dapo Abiodun has called on the protesters to stop and allow the outcome of his engagement with the Bankers Forum and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to yield fruits.

Abiodun, who made this known during the statutory meeting of the Council of Obas at the Oba’s Complex, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta, noted that “CBN is doing its best” to arrest the situation.

The governor said the matter was being discussed at the highest level with President Muhammadu Buhari and the CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, to resolve the crisis.

He recalled that All Progressives Congress (APC) governors had met with Buhari, pleading that the old naira notes be allowed to run as legal tender along with the redesigned currency, pending the resolution of the cash crisis.

While calling for calm, the governor said the voices of the protesters had been heard loud and clear.

His words: “I call on our youths to discontinue the street protests and constructively engage government in finding solutions.

“It has become necessary to formally appeal to all concerned, having heard from many concerned Nigerians and having conducted series of meetings, along with my brother governors, with Buhari, Emefiele and security chiefs on the challenges, sufferings and pains being experienced over this cash scarcity occasioned by the redesigning of our currency.”

Noting that he had personally engaged the CBN controller in Abeokuta and other bank managers to seek relief on the amounts citizens could withdraw, he said: “I understand the frustration, disappointments of our citizens queuing at Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), waiting to cash money for hours or entering banking halls only to be turned back or given so little that is not enough to meet their immediate needs.”

He added that he does not doubt the good intention of the policy.

“We will hear from the President as to what steps are being taken to bring succour to Nigerians. My plea to our monarchs, being the closest to the grassroots, is to ensure the maintenance of peace in their domains with the support of their subjects.

“We will not be where we are in terms of socio-economic development in an atmosphere of insecurity; so we owe a lot to you. My charge to you this afternoon is that you help us manage this situation. Our people will listen to you. They will trust and believe you. Please help us to intervene.”

According to him, Ogun has always had a record of managing its problems in a very different way.

He said: “During the #EndSARS crisis, we remained the most peaceful state across the country and I do not have a doubt that in that same manner that we managed ourselves during #EndSARS, we will also do so during this period.”

Abiodun further said it is disheartening to see bank buildings being vandalised and people resorting to violence to register their displeasure.

In his remarks, the Chairman, Ogun State Council of Obas and the Paramount ruler of Remoland, Babatunde Ajayi, thanked the governor for looking after the traditional institution in the state, describing the 2021 Obas law is a comprehensive piece of legislation.