CBN denies plans to shut down financial transactions for election
The Central Bank of Nigeria has denied rumors that it intends to halt financial transactions from February 23rd to February 27th, 2023, ahead of the upcoming elections.
A WhatsApp message went viral at the start of the week, claiming that the apex bank would shut down all electronic bank networks between Thursday and Monday to prevent vote-buying.
The message, titled "Special report," stated, "CBN PLANS TO SHUT DOWN FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS FROM THURSDAY, FEBUARY 23 TO THURSDAY, FEBUARY 27.
GO STOCK YOUR HOUSE....
"Anyhow, you can get money between today and tomorrow, get and keep it, and do whatever transfer you want to do between today and tomorrow," it said. According to what I'm hearing, bank networks will go down on Thursday and remain down until Sunday or Monday, preventing politicians from transferring money to anyone in order to vote. So, please buy enough food at home and make your transfer now because the next five days will be difficult."
On Wednesday, CBN shared a copy of the message on its verified Instagram page, stating that the report was false and warning the public to "beware of fake news."
The rumors come amid the naira's redesign policy and currency swap, which has caused a cash shortage in several parts of the country.
Due to the policy's harsh effects, queues, riots, and bank burnings have occurred in several cities over the last two weeks.
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