From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
Former Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP) National Publicity Secretary, Metuh Olisa, has said the new cashless policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria ( CBN) is counter-productive and an inconvenience to the poor.
Olisa, in a statement, on Wednesday, said it is inconceivable that in an economy bedevilled with random multiple bank charges, the apex bank would compel petty traders to acquire a Point of Sales(POS) machines.
According to him, that would amount to further exposing poor Nigerians to further to deductions by banks and may be an opportunity to fleece the people.
“How do you expect Nigerians to patronise the banana and fruit sellers? Should we stop buying from petty traders because of network delays in effecting transactions? What of the attendant ceaseless and multiple deductions from the accounts of these petty traders? What of the security scare of waiting to confirm payments by the roadside?
“Is this a good time to effect a sudden, immediate and almost total cashless policy in our economy? We have witnessed cash transactions even in developed economies of the world.
” There is no thriving economy where people are restricted from withdrawing less than $30 in a day and $120 in a week. This new directive by the CBN is as draconian as it is counter-productive to self employment at the lowest cadre.
I call on the CBN to mitigate these measures with a freeze on withdrawal charges by banks and introduce policies to ensure that transfers and transactions are not impeded by network problems. Otherwise the policy will be reminiscent of Idi Amin’s order to print more money in the old Uganda.
“The CBN should not allow the lives of very poor Nigerians to be frustrated to such an extent as openly embracing crime as an alternative to mean policies of the government. At times like this, we all expect our elected and appointed representatives to defend the interest of the ordinary people. A society that does not care for the poor will eventually witness anarchy and violent revolt,” Olisa stated.
