Hundreds of traders in Potiskum Central market of Yobe State yesterday shut down their businesses over the scarcity of new naira notes.
Reacting over the CBN dateline, some traders in Potiskum, said they don’t have any other options than to close their businesses until the new notes are available.
Malam Musa Isa, a trader with a provision shop at Kasuwar NPN in Potiskum metropolitan, said he closed his shop due to the non-availability of new notes.
“I used to make sales of about N200,000 each day but hardly received N10,000 new Naira notes and whenever I collected the old one I am finding it difficult to change it in my bank because of the long queue,” he said.
“So to be on the safer side I closed my business till after the old notes are available. As I’m speaking to you now. Many people closed their shops in the town, people are suffering”
Also, an akara and pap seller along Texaco in Potiskum town, Ruth Samuel, said she closed her business until after the new naira notes are in circulation.
She added “Whoever bought my akara is giving me old notes, and when I took it to buy my stuff, they are rejecting it so I should close until after the new naira notes are in circulation,”
It was observed that customers at banks were in queues as early as 7 am yesterday to deposit their old notes and others to withdraw new notes at ATMs.
Alhaji Isa Mohammed, one of the customers in one of the commercial banks, said he spent more than 24 hours on the queue before he deposited his old notes.
Also, speaking to some businessmen from Damaturu, the state capital, Malam Ali in said he spent about eight hours on the ATM queue before he withdrew N20,000 of the new naira notes.
They, however, appealed to the apex bank and commercial banks to consider the suffering of Nigerians and provide a solution to the problems.
It was learned that the situation might worsen soon due to the payment of salaries by the state government on the 25th of February next coming week