N5,000 note’ll encourage money laundering – Fasehun

Dr. Frederick Fasehun

Founder and President, Oodua Peoples Congress, Dr. Frederick Fasehun, says the planned introduction of N5,000 note will encourage money laundering.

Fasehun said this during a media roundtable in Lagos on Wednesday.

According to him, imposing the new note on Nigerians would not augur well for the security and social life of the people.

Fasehun said, “Introducing a high denominational currency will lead to inflation.

“Our fight against corruption, money laundering and inflation will end in a smoke if the CBN goes ahead to intoduce the N5,000 note.”

He wondered why the CBN was insistent on the new note at a point when corruption is widespread in Nigeria.

He said, “What do we want to do with N5,000 note? Ghana, rather than coming up with higher denomination note when the Cedi was losing value, downgraded it and it helped her economy to grow.

“We will resist it if the CBN goes through with the new denomination.”

Meanwhile, National Vice-President, the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights, Mr. Taiwo Otitolaye; Kwara State chapter of Nigeria’s Political Parties and The Concerned Citizens of Nigeria have warned that Nigerian may be thrown into another mass revolt over the planned introduction of N5,000 notes if the Federal Government does not stop the planned exercise.

They urged the Federal Government and the National Assembly to halt the exercise.

The country had witnessed an unprecedented mass revolt in January over the withdrawal of fuel subsidy.

In a statement on Wednesday, Otitolaye said CDHR would team up with other civil society groups in the country to ensure that the plan did not succeed.

He alleged that the introduction of the N5,000 note was a script allegedly drafted by the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and other imperialist agencies.

He also said the policy would lead to inflation and urged the National Assembly to intervene and stop its implementation to avoid another mass revolt in the country.