A House of Representatives member, Ibrahim Babajide Obanikoro, has suggested the Central Bank of Nigeria forcibly shut down domiciliary accounts bearing foreign currencies to regulate the continuous fall of the naira.

Mr Obanikoro, currently serving the Eti-Osa Federal Constituency of Lagos State, made this suggestion on Tuesday on Twitter.

“I am not the CBN Governor but at this moment, I’m of the opinion that CBN should mandate that all dorm 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 world and open a foreign currency account,” Mr Obanikoro tweeted.

The Naira has continued to depreciate despite questionable policies enforced by Governor Godwin Emefiele of the CBN to mitigate its freefall. 

In July, Mr Emefiele halted sales of forex to Bureau De Change (BDCs) operators across the country indefinitely.

This unpopular move resulted in the unavailability of the dollar and spurred the downward spiral of naira’s value. 

The Naira has recorded a week-by-week decline in its value against the dollar, currently trading at about N580 to a dollar at the parallel market while the official price trades at N412 to a dollar per a directive by the CBN.

The depreciation in the value of the naira has resulted in hikes in the prices of imported products such as milk, sugar, rice, electronics, cars, and other consumables.