The nation was almost thrown into pandemonium when the news hit headlines of front line media houses that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has pegged daily cash withdrawal of individuals at pantry twenty thousand naira (₦20,000) while corporate organisations were restricted to five hundred thousand naira (₦500,000) weekly.
Expectedly, the policy elicited vehement reactions as most Nigerians described the action as a barefaced infringement on their fundamental human rights.
A great percentage of Nigerians who spoke to The New Diplomat argued that the federal government have no right to dictate to them on when and how to utilise their hard earned money. Forty three years old Lagos Banker, John Efosa insisted that the recent CBN Cashless Policy would create more confusion in the system as Nigerians are realistic human because they are practical in all they do.
The Banker who posited that the average and poor Nigerians have remained victims of most government’s obnoxious policies. In the same vein, a trader at the popular mile 12 market in Lagos, Mohammed Yusuf who deals exclusively on food items wondered how his colleagues would cope as they record daily sales returns beyond the CBN restricted sum of individuals.
Yusuf lamented that petty traders are at the receiving end as they may end up paying huge sum of money as cost of deposit and withdrawals respectively.
Hear him, an individual trader in this Mile 12 market make a daily average sales of over three hundred thousand naira (₦300,000) or more. Similarly, our customers make daily average purchase of more than fifty thousand naira (₦50,000).
Fortunately most of us are not literate enough to understand the workings of money transfer.” This fear expressed by the trader has become the bane of local traders domiciled in different local communities in Nigeria where network reception are reportedly at its lowest ebb. But a transporter who gave his names as Ekene Ofodili who described the exercise as a charade targeted at politicians. Ofodili said the policy was government deliberate attempt to checkmate election rigging by desperate politicians who had vowed to win at all costs.
He disclosed that President Mahmoud Buhari had vowed in different fora to be transparent in the on going electoral process, adding that perhaps, this CBN policy of mopping up funds in the system may be another way of making good his promise. He said: ” I’m very convinced President Buhari wants to truly control money bag politicians and make election rigging almost impracticable.”. The transporter, however, expressed optimism that the policy would be reversed shortly after the election. A newspaper vendor who would not want his names in print argued that the recent policy may force many business operators to close shop. He specifically mentioned PoS operator who eke a living by dispensing cash to ordinary Nigerians on daily basis. However other businesses that would bear the brunt of the CBN limited cash withdrawals include but not restricted to the the hospitality industry, party vendors petty traders among others.
