- By Halimah Olamide
Amidst the anxieties over the deadline for the legal tender status of the old Naira notes in Nigeria, a message had gone viral during the week asking Nigerians to report any bank whose Automatic Teller Machines dispenses old Naira notes to the Central Bank of Nigeria.
THE CLAIMS:
One of the viral messages had read thus:
“CBN DIRECTIVES:
“If you see an ATM dispensing Old #500 or #1000, Please send a text, with the bank details to CBN on: 08176657641 or 08176657642.
“Please Spread the message.”
In the same vein, another similar message had gone viral claiming that the January 31, 2023 deadline for the old Naira notes had been extended to February 30, 2023.
The viral message read thus:
“BREAKING NEWS
“CBN just extended the deadline for the deposit of old Naira notes to February 30th, 2023.”
NPO Reports fact-checked both claims.
The Director of Corporate Communications at the Central Bank of Nigeria, Dr. Abdul Isa dismissed the first message as false. He however admitted that the two phone numbers attached to the message belong to the apex bank.
In the second claim which said the deadline had been extended to February 30, 2022, the Director of Corporate Communication, said there was no statement emanating from the CBN extending the deadline.
VERDICTL:
Both claims were found to be FALSE.