Old Notes: Aisha Buhari Denies Posting Fake CBN Statement on Instagram Page, Says Her Account Has Been Hacked

Deji Elumoye in Abuja 

Wife of the President, Aisha Buhari, has denied authorship of a post claiming that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had extended validity period for old N,1000 and N500 notes till May 1, 2023.

The said message, which was later tagged as fake news by the CBN, had been sighted on the First Lady’s verified Instagram handle on Tuesday, but was later pulled down after a while, as it had been labelled as fake news.

According to the fake press release: “Due to the current and unpleasant situation happening in Nigeria, In line with Mr. President. After having a closed meeting with him on the 20th of February, 2023, Central Bank Of Nigeria (CBN) has been directed to ONLY reissue and recirculate the old N200, N500 and N1000 banknotes and this is expected to circulate as legal tender for 70 days up to May 1, 2023. Members of the public should therefore continue to spend the old notes”.

In another post on the same verified Instagram handle, Mrs Buhari, in a reaction, denied posting the press release, but alleged her account had been hacked and the fake post was another attempt at smearing her image by the same persons responsible for deleting many of her social media posts in the past 

According to her, she immediately ordered that the fake press release be taken down from her handle when it was discovered, even as she tasked security and intelligence agencies to investigate and bring culprits to justice.

The new post said: “It has come to my attention that a certain fake news was posted on my social media handle, Instagram, which also directly connects to my Facebook page, earlier this morning. I have since directed that it should be deleted.

“This is without a doubt the criminal actions of the person(s) who were responsible for deleting quite a number of my posts since 2018 to late last year when I posted a video and picture of my hands with henna design of ABAT insignia on the day I launched the APC Women Presidential Campaign Committee for Bola Ahmed Tinubu in Ilorin, Kwara State, my post on the event for the Traditional and Complementary Alternative Medicine (TCAM) conference and 17 other posts.

“This person is a hacker, criminally minded with the intention to continue attacking my reputation through my social media platforms.

“But I am assuring you that this is the first and last I am disclaiming fake news on my handle. It is the responsibility of the security agencies to find out who am I sharing my social media handles with, despite being verified accounts, and take all necessary actions”.