 You're welcome back. It's still the run-up. And we're talking right now about the twists and turns of following the redesigning of the Naira, alleged plans by top politicians to organize violent protests against CBN. Conference of Nigerian political parties chairman and candidates for the 2023 elections slated for February 25 have rejected alleged plans by some people to force the central bank of Nigeria to suspend the ongoing Naira redesign policy that threatened to pull out of the election if the apex bank was forced to succumb to pressure and blackmail and suspend the policy. They claimed to be in possession of credible security reports which indicated that there is a plot to instigate violent disturbances to provoke civil unrest aimed at forcing the CBN to postpone the policy. They alleged that the charge was being led by the governors of Kaduna and Kano States, Malam Nasir El-Rufai and Dr. Abdullah Higanduje. They also claimed that Governor Hopu Zadima of Imo State, Governor Babaji Desom Olu of Lagos, Governor Nyesom Wike of River State and Rotimiakere Dulu of Ondo State were part of their alleged plot. Well, all these are allegations and they are up to at least 14 political parties who have threatened to boycott the election should the Naira redesign policy be put on hold because they believe that it is a plot to rig the election. The political party said they were backing the policy because it would improve the credibility of the elections and joining us to discuss the twist and turns of the Naira redesign is Mr. Theo Philos Akatuba, a media consultant and a public affairs analyst. Welcome to the program Mr. Akatuba. Good morning, Yamgo. Good morning, Nigerian. What a pleasure to be with you in this moment in history. When you talk about pleasure, we'll be thinking, do you have the Naira in your pocket? I have not had the Naira for some time until an artist visited me to do something in my house and he told me he had some of the Naira notes with him because he got them queuing for 5 a.m. so I asked him to give them to me and he generously gave me the first set of 10,000 Nairas. That's interesting. I was happy to hold them because a lot of people have been seeking after them. Yeah, today I was coming to work as early as 5 and I saw the queues in every single ATM I passed on the way to work this morning. But be that as it may, I'd like to have your perspective. I'd like to have how you feel, know how you feel about the Naira redesign. Well, the first feeling I have is to look at the big picture that this step, increasingly on a daily basis, is getting clearer to me that this is one of the best decisions to attack all manner of challenges that the country faces. The only problem is the timing and the window allowed appear to be short. So I'm fine because I go by, I see friends get divided by this policy, associate scattered into various camps, disagreeing and agreeing. For me, the reasons are used by the central bank. They are so not of a thought that currency redesign will be able to touch on all aspects and all aspects of the problems that the country is facing. And the loudest protesters are the political class. And I understand the reason, but a drastic disease cause for a drastic measure. Okay, but some people like the APC, for instance, they not the APC, let me not talk about the APC because some people are in support who are still in APC, they're in support of the policy. But the presidential candidate of the APC, for instance, has said the Naira redesign is targeted at him. And some people are also using that as to say that the Naira redesign was targeted at particular politicians. Do you also believe that? Well, the designer of this policy is not targeting a particular politician, but it's like a church when a sermon is being preached. And the pastor mentioned the kind of sins that you are involved in. An unintended part of the sermon, you will take it on to yourself that this pastor must have probably heard of my sin. And he's targeting me. So for me, Tinnubu said that it can just be like it to the scenario I just painted of a church. This is a policy for the good of the country. If any one of us personalize it, that it's a target at him as your ambition, it's most unfortunate because there is no time in this country that the policy will be made or a decision or a law will be made that someone will not feel that this law is designed against him or her. If especially that law is correcting a certain aspect of your oppression that is haunting the country. Politicians, as you know it, need a lot of money to influence a lot of things. Otherwise, what makes them different from the other? If not for the financial power, the will or the network ability to find the money to prosecute the political agenda. Tinnubu or anyone else is not dismantled, they are not dismantled by Nigeria. But because they have the resource of either the money or they have the network of men and women who can mobilize these resources. So when he said that, I understood. I am his supporter and but I do not agree with him that he targeted at him. I believe that on the contrary, if you look deeply, if this election is allowed to be held under the current circumstances and he is victorious, it goes to show that his victory is very legitimate and no one can accuse him of influencing it one way or the other. Okay, there are some people who said while the NARA redesign might be a very, very good policy, but the cut was put in front of the horse. Because, for instance, to even do a transfer these days, maybe because the network is jammed or some other reason that might be given, it's very difficult. You send a 5,000, a 10,000, some people have just 2,000 in their account and they want to make a transaction and they send it, they debit them, it doesn't get to the destination and you cannot even make a transaction e-wise if I might use that. But now the NARA redesign is forcing everybody to do transfers, which is good anyway, cashless policy. But people still feel that we were not prepared, we were not ready for this kind of a policy because we should have done something about the banks and their numerous charges that people are not comfortable with. We should have done something about the networks which we know that with small pressure, it gets locked. We should have done something about so many other things before we brought a policy like this. Do you also believe that we were not ready for this one? Well, it is becoming clearer that we are inadequately prepared in terms of the infrastructure that is required to support the cashless policy that the country has taken upon itself. Now, if you look at it, there are two policies at the same time. So the impact will be twice or twice as much. We are redesigning the currency at the same time introducing the cashless policy in order to combat so many speed falls. So the two of them impacting at the same time is what is called drooping and making it very chaotic. If we were just only going to swap the currency and say change old for new, I'm sure it will not be as bad as it is. But we change the currency and at the same time trying to limit cash, introduce cash, we draw a limit for all categories of persons. So these things are happening at the same time is too drastic for the ordinary Nigeria. But like I said, there is a huge security reason. There are multiple reasons behind the design. And it is a very drastic step in a country that has such a fragile impact, but we will not have known because the banks themselves have not been very, very truthful about themselves, about their level of readiness. They have always appeared to be excessively ready. They have always declared humongous profits, even when economies decree, even during COVID. So a lot of these profits are not properly invested in expansion of their of their infrastructure. But on a daily basis, they keep acquiring new customers. For the first time now, that facility is put to proper pressure and test and is falling apart. And so we must, this country must seek towards excellence. If you remember, CBN licensed MTN and Nine Mobile to provide what you call mobile money services. But the banks have continually frustrated and frustrated the efforts of the of the telcos to join in the money movement where you can move money to any remote part, so long as you have what you call a core signal. This situation now is opening up that all more channels must be allowed. But for me, because the president is constrained with time and because a major election that is coming to be tested, you know, in the wake of a new electoral reform, in order for that reform to really be seen to be effected. If you allow politicians to be able to plant the system, so bringing in the political attempt to go into the redesign makes it look like we are putting the cart before the hospital. There is a greater good. And if the citizens can just tarry, I believe, we will see that we will have a cleaner election and then we move on to other issues. But it's a tough one. People are stressed. People are happy. And so that's what the problem now the country is facing, how to manage all of that and ensure that people have access to the money and their confidence are built. People should do no little Q. People can easily walk into anything big, five thousand, ten thousand, and life just goes on. Unfortunately, you know, there's a lot of pressure and people are really unhappy. Okay. Well, finally, let's just wrap up. Very very short. Just speak to Nigerians because we have, today is the seventh, we have less than 20 days to the general election. With this your optimism, let's see you infect, as it were, the Nigerian populace so that the needful can be done on the 25th of February. But, but let me say this, a lot, just before you, you, you, you, you, I, I leave, I want to say that if you look at this is the first time I have seen politicians fight a policy that they themselves or the government they belong to have formed. It has introduced. It gives me confidence that this policy is good. I understand the cry. I thought the governors should be talking of how money can get to their remotest part instead of flogging down the policy. When the announcement was made, I thought governors and senators will be busy making effort to ensure that CBN provides outlets in their rural communities. A lot of them thought that it was a big joke and it was not going to work. And they just waited on to see how the policy will not work. All of a sudden they saw the result and the next thing they did is to unleash all their full soldiers all over the media, you know, to demonize the CBN governor. And when they couldn't succeed, they have to start, they started separating the president from their rank and fight and say that the president is the wicked one. For the first time we begin to hear that the president is the only single man that takes a lot of decisions against the popular decision. I see an orchestrated design. People are saying they will unleash terror. Yes, I cannot, I believe that in the weeks to come there will be a lot of crisis in this country unless we step up and we speak to the citizens themselves so that they are not used by the people who feel affected. My final take is anyone who wants to win election in Nigeria should win it clean, fairly, so that his government is legitimate. It helps the country to make progress. Okay, thank you so much. Everybody who wins an election must have deserved it, you know. It's a very good thing to say. Thank you so much Mr. Akatuba for always coming through and being a part of this program today. I'm always at your service because you are a very unique individual. Thank you so much. Thank you. Okay, we've been talking with Mr. Theo Fellows Akatuba, media consultant, but I might also mention that he's also an APC member or if not an APC member, at least a chief team in the campaign thrill of the deputy senate leader Umo Agege. So he is in support of the Naira, so it's not everybody APC or not every politician, not everybody who is Nigerian that is against it. Wherever you stand, let us be patient enough because it's always darkest before dawn. Let's hope that the dawn of Nigeria is coming tomorrow. We'll take this break for the news. Stay with us.