Banking

Naira scarcity: Protesters set ablaze 3 banks in Ogun

No fewer than three banks were set ablaze by protesters in the Sagamu area of Ogun State on Monday morning over the scarcity of naira notes in the state.

It was gathered that Union Bank, First Bank, and Keystone Bank branches in Sagamu were set ablaze by the protesters.

The Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer, Abimbola Oyeyemi, who confirmed the incident, said policemen have been deployed to the area.

“We are in Sagamu now. The place is seriously burning.

“They attacked Union Bank and First Bank as well as Keystone Bank. We are there right now,” Oyeyemi disclosed.

There have been protests in the state and some parts of the country over the scarcity of naira notes and the rejection of old N500 and N1,000 notes.

Some aggrieved residents, last Friday, blocked the Lagos-Abeokuta expressway in Ogun State, stressing that filling stations have since been rejecting the old naira notes from customers.

In his reaction, the state governor, Dapo Abiodun, vowed to revoke the Certificate of Occupancy (CofO) of any organisation that rejects old naira notes from customers in the state.

Abiodun, in a series of tweets on his verified Twitter account, said the Supreme Court has declared that the old denominations remain legal tender.

President Muhammadu Buhari had, on Thursday, said the old N200 notes should be used with the new notes till April 10, 2023, while the old N500 and N1,000 notes ceased to be legal tender in the country.

The Star