Reps member calls for closure of domiciliary accounts to save naira

A House of Reps member, Ibrahim Obanikoro,  representing Eti-Osa Federal Constituency, Lagos State, has called on the Central Bank of Nigeria to close all domiciliary accounts for the next 12 months to ease the slide of the naira.

Obanikoro stated this in an online statement on Tuesday evening, adding that he has come up with a bill that will serve the common good.

He also noted that after all Nigerians cannot go to foreign countries that regulate the foreign currencies in Nigerian domiciliary accounts and “open a foreign currency account.”

What the lawmaker said

Obanikoro said, “I am not the CBN Governor but at this moment, I’m of the opinion that CBN should mandate that all dom accounts be closed for the next 12 months.

“Let’s see the effect on the Naira. After all, you can’t go to any of the Western worlds and open a foreign currency account.”

The lawmaker’s opinions on naira policies were met with condemnations as a social media with the handle @adekunleth said: “You occupy a federal public office. This means that there are certain expectations of you, including a reasonable degree of knowledge of public matters or at least the dignity to carefully research before sharing. Seriously.

What you should know

The Central Bank of Nigeria has implemented a number of policies to stem the slide of the naira, including restricting accounts of security trading fintech and most recently accusing currency update website, AbokiFX of contributing to the slide of the naira, which forced the website to suspend the daily updates.

In June, the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) stated that CBN’s deficit financing, which has increased significantly, is highly inflationary due to its profound effect on money supply growth.