By Nse Anthony-Uko
(Sundiata Post) – The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has called on Nigerians to treat the naira with respect.
Deputy Governor, Corporate Services of the CBN, Edward Adamu made the call on Tuesday in Abuja at the CBN’s 2018 International Museum Day celebrations.
Adamu pleaded with Nigerians to handle the Naira with care, “as it is a symbol of the nation’s identity and pride.”
According to the CBN Deputy Governor “the Naira as a symbol of our national pride should not be sprayed or step on, should not be squeezed, defaced or stained. The naira should not be sold or counterfeited.”
Speaking on the essence of exhibiting Nigeria’s past and present currencies in the bank’s museum, Mr Adamu noted that “the exhibition explores the naira in terms of its life cycle from conception to the end of its life otherwise known as the birth to death of bank notes.”
The exhibition he said is “an opportunity for Nigerians to know now the notes come about from conception to its final resting place or its end product which is are recycled products, all these activities are contained in the exhibition.”
Adamu said it is impossible to understand the role of museums without taking into account all the connections to culture, their inherent arts, their communities and their environment.
The CBN Deputy Governor noted that “thanks to technology Nigerians museums can now reach beyond their core audience and find new publics through hyper connectivity.”
Hyper connectivity he disclosed “is a term coined in 2001 to describe the multiple means of communication such as we have today like Face to face contact, instant messaging, telephone etc, in the hyper connected world of today, museums have joined the trend.
He said that the CBN houses a Currency Museum, “which explains the evolution of money in Nigeria, from the pre-colonial era to the contemporary times. The CBN hopes that through the activities of the Currency Museum, members of the public would be better educated on how to properly handle the naira and other related matters.
Also, speaking at the event was the Deputy Director, Currency Operations Department, Vincent Wuranti who lamented that the way and manner Nigerians handle the Naira, affects its life span.
Wuranti noted that “a lot of thought was put into the design and production of the nation’s currency, thus the need to have respect for the currency.”
He reminded Nigerians that Section 21 of the CBN act of 2007, stipulates that the abuse of the Naira through such acts as squeezing, staining, writing on, spraying and illegal sales amongst others are punishable offences.
The Act he said clearly “states that the offender must pay nothing less than N50,000 or jail term of six months or both while Section 20 (4) of the CBN act 2007 provides penalty of not less than five years jail term for counterfeiting the Naira with no option of fine.