Two banks set ablaze by protesters of naira scarcity in Ogun
Two banks have been set on fire as residents protest the ongoing naira scarcity in Sagamu, Ogun State.
The videos shared on Monday showed many residents watching as Keystone and Union banks were set ablaze with some youths holding planks in protest.
READ ALSO: Buhari orders return of old N200 note into circulation
On Friday last week, The PUNCH reported how a protest erupted in the Mowe-Ibafo area of Ogun State, with many residents blocking the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway in protest of the woes and hardship caused by the lingering scarcity of the naira.
READ ALSO: Naira Scarcity: Bank workers to shut down operation over attacks
The state Police Public Relations Officer, Bola Oyeyemi, could not be reached as at the time of filing this report, as phone calls to his line were not responded to.
The attack comes a few weeks after the National Union of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions Employees (NUBIFIE) threatened to close down commercial banks nationwide over the increasing attacks on workers and equipment.
Meanwhile, on Thursday last week, the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), in a national broadcast had said the old N500 and N1,000 notes were no longer legal tender in the country, however extending the validity of the old N200 note for 60 days, till April 10, 2023.
Following the scarcity of the redesigned naira notes, there has been chaos in various states of the nation as citizens trying to swap their old notes with the new ones are met with long queues at ATMs and slow network reception for online financial transactions.
READ ALSO: How not to redesign the naira, by Hassan Gimba
This has prompted some hoodlums to react in anger and attack the commercial banks’ ATMs and injure staff in the process.
