“Ditch the Dollar or doom the Naira” — Ned Nwoko to Tinubu

Senator Ned Nwoko isn’t mincing words about what he sees as the Achilles’ heel of Nigeria’s economy: the unchecked use of foreign currencies.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today, Nwoko argued that the naira’s dwindling value is tied directly to the circulation of the dollar, pound, and euro alongside Nigeria’s own currency—a practice he says is unique to Nigeria and weakening its economic stability.

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According to Ned Nwoko, Nigeria stands alone in permitting foreign currencies to function domestically, weakening the naira’s strength on both local and international stages.

“If you want to buy oil or gold in Nigeria, you should need naira—nothing else,” he stated, calling for a complete currency overhaul that would force international transactions in naira, thereby creating a demand that the currency currently lacks.

This shift, Nwoko argues, would force foreign businesses and visitors to transact exclusively in naira, boosting its market value and finally giving Nigeria’s currency the global demand it needs to regain strength.

The senator has gone a step further by drafting a legislative proposal aimed at prohibiting the use of foreign currencies within Nigeria altogether.

Citing examples from the UK and the US, Ned Nwoko explained that countries with strong economies enforce strict single-currency policies, enhancing their currency’s value and demand.

In these countries, visitors must exchange foreign currency at Bureau de Change locations to make purchases—a policy he believes Nigeria must urgently adopt to stop the naira’s decline.