Thousands of traders and farmers at the Kwaya Kusar grains and livestock markets in Kwaya/Kusar Local Council of Borno State, have raised an alarm over the circulation of counterfeit N1,000 currency notes in the community.
They said that the development is affecting their businesses and causing them losses of millions of naira.
Most of the traders and farmers raised their concerns in separate interviews over the weekend in the Kwaya Kusar community.
According to them, the problem is not limited to Kwaya Kusar market but cuts across other markets in Biu and Bayo LGAs, where they normally buy their commodities depending on their market days.
They lamented that the development was sabotaging their economic activities at the markets, while eroding trust between traders and their customers.
One of the traders, Audu Musa, a grain dealer from Gombe main market who came to Kwaya Kusar market to buy maize and millet, said he had been a victim of fake currency notes three times.
“About three weeks ago, I went to Biu grain market to buy some bags of maize, and I was given four pieces of fake N1,000 notes, and I didn’t realise until I was in transit.
“It was when I was about to pay the driver that I saw one new N1,000 note that was very light and felt unusual in my hand, and I suspected it was fake,” lamented Musa.
He added; “I immediately called the person who gave him the currency to complain after discovering three other pieces of such notes in the cash he withdrew.
“My profit is not much, as I make between N3,000 and N4,000 per bag after taking out transportation costs.
“Now I bought three bags, meaning I am expecting roughly N12,000 but now I have N4,000 counterfeit notes, which means my profit margin has been reduced.”
He said governments and relevant authorities should visit the various markets in Biu, Kwaya Kusar and even Shani rural markets to mop up the counterfeit notes and find the source.
“This is highly imperative, especially now that farmers have started harvesting their produce, which will surely increase the volume of trade in the markets.
“Urgent action from relevant agencies is necessary to protect traders from making huge losses,” said Musa.
Also lamenting, another trader, Alhaji Hassan Mai-Dawa, said he was once a victim of the fake N1,000 notes, which he collected from one of the Point of Sales operators in Kwaya Kusar.
He said it was when he went to deposit the money in the bank that the notes were discovered to be fake.
Mai-Dawa added that many of the traders did not receive transfers, so he had to withdraw from POS to enable him buy the grains in the markets
“I think this is something the government should come to because I also faced similar issues in the Biu market.
“Many traders do not know the difference; so, we use the fake note alongside the original ones,” he said.
A beans trader, Ishatu Dogo, said she often noticed some unusual new N1,000 notes inside her cash, but she never really bothered because people collected them from her.
She recounted an incident where she almost fought with a buyer who needed a refund after depositing cash the previous day.
“I gave him the cash I had, and he rejected some of the notes, but I insisted that I am not the one printing them. It was an intense argument, and since then, that buyer never came back to my shop to buy from me,” she said.
Aishatu, however, appealed to the government to send its officials to some of the rural markets to monitor and make necessary arrests to protect traders.
