Nigeria’s apex bank, the Central Bank of Nigeria CBN has reacted to criticisms generated following the unveiling of the newly redesigned naira notes.
Speaking on Arise TV, the CBN Director of the Currency Operations Department, Ahmed Bello Umar, told Nigerians castigating the design to wait to feel the physical notes.
According to him, the design met every expectation and will be loved by Nigerians when it begins full circulation.
His words:
“A lot was put into the redesign, especially on security features, the ink the paper the lines all were carefully done with advance features that will be difficult for any one to counterfeit.
“The best that can be done is photocopy but any Nigeria who is very meticulous will clear differentiate the fake from the original.
“Nigerians should simply wait to see the new naira notes in person.
“It is however important to note that the redesign policy is for CBN to fight inflation and also make its policties effective for the benefit of Nigerians.”
The launch of the redesigned new naira has generated mixed reactions from Nigerians, and celebrities also are not taking chances.
Recall that Nigerians had yesterday taken to social media to mock the newly redesigned naira notes.
Comedian Bright Okpocha, better known as Basketmouth, took to his Instagram page to share redesigned pictures of his face to mock the naira notes.
Captioning the pictures, he wrote:
“The only constant thing in life is… CHANGE
Also, Singer John Ighodaro better known as Johnny Drille, also took to his Twitter page to share his opinion about the redesigned note.
According to the “How are you” crooner, the new notes looked far worse than what they used to be.
Johnny Drille tweeted:
“These new notes are uglier”.