Obadiah Mailafia, a former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Monday, February 13, claimed that up to 20% of bank notes currently in circulation was counterfeit.
He stated that when fake currencies of that magnitude circulate, original currencies become scarce.
In a swift reaction, the Central Bank of Nigeria dismissed the allegation, saying only less than one per cent of bank notes in circulation can be considered to be counterfeit.
NOIPolls has released a poll which gauged the awareness of Nigerians on the recent circulation of counterfeit currencies in Nigeria.
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The new poll released on Monday, March 27, showed that 41% of respondents are aware of the recent circulation of counterfeit currencies (also known as fake naira notes) in the country, and 19% disclosed that they have personally come in contact with counterfeit currencies within the last three months.
The first part of the poll was aimed at finding out how Nigerians heard about the recent circulation of counterfeit currencies. The result showed that 53% heard through word of mouth, 25% through traditional media, 15% had personal experience, 10% through social media, 3% through market place and 2% heard through commercial bank.
The polls showed that residents from the south south zone north east zone had the largest proportion of Nigerians that indicated that they heard about the recent circulation of counterfeit currencies through word of mouth while those from the south east zone had the highest representation of respondents that have had a personal experience with counterfeit currencies which could be attributed to the daily heavy commercial activities in the area.
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The most common place where counterfeit notes are circulated are;
1. Market (67%)
2. Commercial banks (20%)
3. Public transport (5%)
4. ATMs (3%)
5. Street hawkers (2%)
6. Others (3%)
Some of the respondents disclosed how they are able to differentiate between a fake and an original naira note. 43% said the difference in texture, 23% indicated checking the holograph of the face images on the notes, 18% mentioned the difference in colour when compared with an original Naira note of the same denomination while others mentioned the silver lining on the notes (8 percent) and the watermark (6 percent) amongst others differences.
A good number of Nigerians (56%) are blaming the apex bank and other stakeholders for not doing enough to make Nigerians aware about the circulation of these counterfeit currencies as well as educating citizens on how to differentiate between an original currency and a fake one.
On the other hand, 44% are of the opinion that the CBN is doing a good job in spreading awareness about fake notes circulation.
ZENITHBLOG.com visited the market to find out from Nigerians if N1000 is enough to cook a pot of soup in this current hardship and this is what they had to say.
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