By Mohamed Fofanah (Fofie)
Mutilated currency is a currency that has been damaged to the extent that one-half or less of the original note remains, or its condition is such that its value remains questionable.
The silence of West African currencies in global market space can be attributed to the flippant attitude of Africans towards the banknotes and coins in the sub-region. When a single banknote or coin is damaged in a state, it hits the country’s economy severely.
Every little money has a positive impact in the competitive market of a state as well as African global market space. The respect for penny (coin) is equivalent to the value of millions of pounds. Nothing more feeling excruciating when one realizes that West African currencies could not speak loudly in the world market space competitively based on massive mutilation of coins and banknotes.
West African currencies prostrate the image of an elephant that can never fly. Banknotes and coins are destroyed, defaced, burnt, contaminated, torn, perforated and shredded every day by unpatriotic Africans. Banknotes and coins in most West Africa countries have lost their values and voices because of senseless human destructions. I don’t want to be sarcastic, but even the deaf and dumb could be better understood in debate competition with wisest man (KING SOLOMON) than all West African currencies combined.
Why West African nations cannot uphold and respect what they have in hands? remember that a bird in the hand is worth ten times in the bush. We selfishly destroyed our currencies, and West African economy is completely in the red. The increase of Inflation in West Africa has nothing to compete with in the African business environments rather than the sky. Who kills the “One Leone” in Sierra Leone? Sierra Leoneans damaged it for no good cause. What about the “One Butut” in The Gambia? Gambians shredded and neglected it. Why should I be ashamed to mention the “Ten Kobo” in Nigeria? Nigerians decomposed it baselessly. What is wrong with the “Ten Francs” in Senegal? Senegalese gave it an odd look. I can’t mention all the dead currencies in sub-region. West African monies are becoming powerless to the extent that they cannot cross any border within its own sub-geographical territories. The power of currency of each state in West Africa stops in a defined geographical territory. Funny analogy! the geographical boundaries where our leaders’ powers stop, it is there the authority of our currencies stop. Our monies have now become dirt or an ordinary tissue papers in the corridors (borders) within our own environments, and they are completely useless, priceless and powerless when they intend to cross borders.
Africans in this part of the world do not have any respect for one another currencies.
West African monies are poorly handled during transaction processes in the local market squares and some local business environments. The amount of monies Africans have destroyed or mutilated is more than what Africans have saved and protected. The more money is seriously mutilated, the more it lost its values. We, Africans most take it upon ourselves to sincerely protect and handle our currencies with upmost care. It is part of faith as Africans to painstakingly prevent our banknotes and coins from any risk or danger. William C. Brown says: “Money management and protection are the only strategies to survive in this crazy, stupid and doped financial world market.”
Importantly, money needs pretention just like one-month-old baby. The governments in this sub-regions are not setting and implementing polices, laws and standards so that citizens to treat monies fairly. It is only in Africa where governments print monies more than two times within five years’ period. The printing of money is super expensive and crazy, and it affects the states’ economy severely. The destruction of money is alarming these days. The amount of money African governments are wasting in printing monies year in and year out supposed to be used in another sector like health, agriculture, education or infrastructural developments. There should be massive education and sanitization about money management and prevention, and it supposed be taught in our schools, colleges and universities.
Another grim scenario, the prominence Africans give to Dollars, Pounds and Euros jeopardies West African economy and West African market space. The more these overrated currencies increase in formula, the more West African currencies are deprecating in value. Why Dollars, Pounds, and Euros should speak more eloquently in African market space than our own currencies? every business transition more especially in the electronic transition system in West Africa is done in dollars or pounds. We kill our currencies because of the duplicitous honour and respect we have for Dollars, Pounds and Euros. Our monies are uselessly preserved to buy pepper and salt in our local markets. West African currencies supposed to chair the West African business environments depending if we give an iota of respect to banknotes and coins. Dollar and pound are escalating every day in African global market because we give more preference to them.
I am vividly saying this to my follow Africans and leaders in the sub-region that the acceptance of dollars in African market is also a contributing factor for the perpetual augmentation of the prices of local foodstuffs in West Africa. The dollar system works with the (GREATER THE X and GREATER THE Y THEORY) in the West African business environments. In other words, the more the price per dollar increases on daily basis, the more the prices of local foodstuff are skyrocketing in our business environments, and it affects the poor masses negatively.
Meanwhile, money is tripartite; for every money we handle positively, our past, present and future is there as Africans. Likewise, for every banknote or coin we damage senselessly, we have destroyed our past, present and future as Africans and it will affect our economy and depreciate currencies value. There are millions of mutilated banknotes and coins in the Central Bank of Sierra Leone, Central Bank of Nigeria, Central Bank of The Gambia, Central Bank of Burkina Faso, Central Bank of Ghana, to name some. The World Bank recommended that currencies notes can be mutilated in diverse ways. But the most common are: fire mismanagement, chemical and explosive, insect, petrification or deterioration by burying, writing on currency notes and water. So, in that regard, I am calling on all Africans to avoid the mutilation of beloved banknotes and coins; we should take the honest ventures to protect and to uphold Africans currencies to highest esteem. Our leaders in West Africa need to reinforce laws and policies to protect our monies from being damaged or mutilated. I hope the leaders will agree with me to put our beautiful currencies above Dollar, Pound and Euro in our African business environments.
Conclusively, “Mama Africa” spoke to me in-deep-spirit. She told me to inform the leaders in Africa that: “My precious currencies should be the kings and queens in your inter-states’ business activities. Your inter-countries trades should be run in my own currencies, and the prices of local foodstuffs in the local market will not be too expensive for the poorest Africans to afford.” I am looking forward to that day when Africa will have a prestigious, competitive and defined single currency called (AFRO). My follow Africans, remember that the day we will achieve the agenda of one currency, it is the day Africa will unify and magnify for all and sundry.
