Agenda Papers Editorial: Enough of this suffering of Nigerians by ÇBN & Banks on naira cash scarcity—By Austine Uche-Ejeke

Of all the problems bedeviling the country and Nigerians today the issue of naira cash scarcity and inability of Nigerians to access their own money in the banks should not come up at all.

This is in the sense that Nigerians have not had it so bad in decades the current hardship, suffering and neglect they are passing through today.

The least they can ask of is the right to access the money they saved in the bank or money the banks were used as a means of payment to product and services they rendered.

But what do we have today, a situation where Nigerians will queue for hours either at the bank’s counter or at the ATM only to be paid paltry maximum of N5,000, N10,000 or N20,000 depending on the bank or how lucky you are. This is not supposed to be so

Perpetual praise singers and supporters of evil will be quick to tell you that the problem did not start with this regime. In fact they will be quick to tell you that former sacked ÇBN governor Godwin Emefiele is the major cause of all the problems.

The question is for how long should we continue in this blame game and when will it stop. Thank God Emefiele is no longer the ÇBN governor today as the current regime campaigned and promised to right the wrong of the previous administration. Then why does this problem still persist up to this moment.

It is our position to lay the blame at the door steps of ÇBN governor under the headship of Yemi Cardoso. Our position is predicated on the fact that the ÇBN remains the lender of last resort, regulator and enforcer of all monetary transactions and activities in the country.

If that is the case the ÇBN as an enforcement monetary institution should know how much money it dishes out to the banks and also monitor if this money is evenly distributed to ensure that a greater number of Nigerians have access to their own money as at when they want it.

To us it’s mere tomfoolery and playing to the gallery all the time when ÇBN will ask Nigerians to report banks that don’t meet up with their demands. Funny enough ÇBN will put some phoney phone numbers that are hard to connect for Nigerians to make complaints.

The most annoying aspect of all these is that the same cash that Nigerians cannot get across the counter or at the ATM machines are often seen with individuals and you keep on wondering how individuals and organizations manage to get these raw cash.

Cases of bursted warehouses, apartments where stacks of bundles of naira are discovered keep on insulting the psyche and sensibilities of Nigerians who often question if this is not the same cash they are not able to withdraw at the banks and ATMs.

Also the same scarce cash is what we find in the hands of POS operators and those described as cash merchants. The implication of this is that Nigerians now use money to buy their own money they are supposed to cash out at the bank’s counter or at the ATMs! What a tragedy and suffering of double jeopardy by depositors.

The problem is further accentuated by the shocking revelation that super markets, petrol filling stations and others now engage in the lucrative business of cash trading whereby the cash they collect from buyers are now sold to POS operators and cash merchants for them to resell to hapless Nigerians.

An ageing woman in Umuahia, Abia state cried out recently when she lamented how they now use money to buy their own money in the hands of POS operators.This is the same money they are supposed to collect from the bank. She recounted how she used N400 to collect N15000. The actual charges is supposed to be N100.

All these points out to the rot in the system whereby banks rip off depositors not only through extraneous and out of this world charges but also sell off their hard earned cash to POS operators who in turn will resell the same money to them at a very outrageous rate and percentage. No wonder banks keep on declaring sickening billions of naira as profit every year even when the economy is not smiling.

It is in the observation of all these that we call on the federal government to put fire on ÇBN and particularly the ÇBN governor Yemi Cardoso to sit up and do their work. They should police and monitor these banks accurately. They can go further to be making publications of how much cash each bank is given out on a daily basis and question them when there are reports of shortage or cash scarcity by depositors.

That also brings in the role of security agencies in the country. The national security adviser (NSA) Nuhu Ribadu should leave politics alone and stop being the poster boy of president Tinubu. Ribadu should stop doing the work of minister of information or publicity secretary of the ruling APC or even doing the work of a presidential spokesman. He should face the onerous task of providing adequate security to the entire country. A country where its citizens cry out daily of inability to access their own money in the banks is a huge security risk and problem that if not urgently and adequately tackled could lead to uprising and break down of law and order.

The EFCC, DSS, IGP, Police and other security agencies should live up to their billing and police these banks. EFCC should not just be seen pursuing yahoo yahoo boys and other ‘minor criminals ‘ but see this as a major economic and financial crime against the citizens of this great country. They should put their eyes on the ground to see how these money develop wings and find solace in the confines of individuals and organizations.

This is the festive season of Christmas and end of year activities and as such Nigerians need their own money to carry out a lot of transactions. They should not be denied access to their money or forced to buy same exorbitantly at the hands of POS operators and cash merchants. They should have it when they need it.

Nigerians have suffered enough untold hardship concerning this and the government better wake up to its responsibility before things get out of hand and before Nigerians take the laws into their hands and unleash pent up wrath on the excruciating hardships they have been enduring all these while.

**Austine Uche-Ejeke, a public affairs analyst and publisher of Agenda Papers wrote vide eaustineuche@yahoo.com