*Urges management to make money available for the people
By; SADIQ ABUBAKAR, Maiduguri
The Senator representing Borno South Senatorial District at the National Assembly, Senator Mohammed Ali Ndume has accused the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) of suffering poor Nigerian masses and frustrating national economy with its cashless policy implementation process.
The federal lawmaker who is also the Chairman, Senate Committee on Army, said, “the cashless policy is a threat to security personnel in the field who are on their duty posts in different security check points and black spots or battle fields as they find it very difficult to get access to the money to buy food or water to eat and drink even in nearby banks.
Ndume who stated this on Saturday in an interactive session with journalists at his residence in Maiduguri, described the CBN cashless policy implementation process as completely a set back to democracy and the electioneerng campaign rallies by the political candidates across the country.
Senator Ndume said the situation has badly affected many Nigerians and collapsed socio economic and political activities of the people and compounded poverty and hardship of the ordinary citizens of the country, while calling on the CBN authority to expedite action as a matter of importance and urgency to manage and control the situation before it gets out of hand or control as rampages, protests demonstrations and tensions across the country have beclouded the cashless situation, making it terrible.
He also criticized the implementation process of the CBN cashless policy which is targeted at tracking down the huge amount of money with big wigs who have been stocking the Nigerian currency in their private homes, farmlands, warehouses, overhead tanks and strong rooms at the detriment of the large majority of the Nigerian poor masses who are mostly, petty traders, grocers, grains sellers and beans cake fryers or chin chin or moi moi sellers.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Army also said that, “the military personnel who are mostly on pass for a short period cannot even have access to their money in banks and ATM machines to withdraw the money at ATM, machines or POS to buy food and return to base or duty posts.
”It takes longer time or to be on long queues even if banks or ATM machines are available, it is difficult for them to get money. While in most places, there is no even the old and new Naira notes on the machines, both ATM and POS. The ATM and POS machines are cashless.”
He also lamented that the situation has drastically affected security situation in the country, where military personnel in uniform will be off duty and be on long queues to get money for food and drinks at ATM and POS machines endlessly, while calling on the CBN to make concerted efforts to make money available in banks and enough for the people.
He also asserted that the cashless policy implementation process has created adverse effects on the innocent and good people of Nigeria who are daily in search of their daily bread working, trading, producing, manufacturing, and farming earnestly in all the nooks and crannies of the country by paralyzing their activities.
According to him, hundreds and millions of Nigerians have been exposed to severe hardships and sufferings with the cashless policy as many Nigerians have been stranded in the name of mopping up about three trillion old Naira notes, while only about 300 billion new Naira notes have been printed, and released or put in circulation through banks to circulate across the country.
The federal lawmakers added that the CBN cashless policy implementation process seemed to be calculated at truncating the nascent democracy and causing havoc and severe hardships to the large majority of the Nigerian masses, saying, “If not, the CBN could not have said it intended to mop up such large amount of money and only release or print such small amount of new Naira notes to replace or exchange the volume of the old Naira notes it mopped up.”
Ndume further frowned at the manner most bank officials who have been accused and alleged to be involved in carrying the new Naira notes in large quantity to the houses and offices of big wigs and their godfathers in exchange for the old Naira notes, instead of putting such huge amount of the new Naira notes on ATM and POS machines for the people to withdraw their money through the bank ATM machine or POS machines who are also agents of the banks.
He lamented seriously how ATM machines and POS operators have been cashless and empty all these days, while few rich people; and top politicians sit at home to get their new Naira notes at the detriment of the poor masses who are struggling to survive and make ends meet, selling on the streets or in the markets or running shops and stores along the roads and streets in towns and village’s without the new Naira notes.
He also suggested to the CBN to rather carry out its search light to the houses or places of those big wigs and forces that they know or accuse them of hiding huge Nigerian currency in their private houses and arrest them or bring their names and consignments to book or the public by way of exposing them and seizing their property, which is much appropriate rather than suffering the poor masses of Nigeria for doing nothing or no cause,.
Senator Ndume also, said that, ”the complete CBN cashless police implementation process is a violation of people’s rights as it is against human rights and freedom of Nigerians. It is unconstitutional. It also deprives and stripes Nigerians of their legitimate rights to own and deposit Nigerian currency in the bank as the banks deny them their money. The banks rather frustrate their bank customers which mostly are the poor Nigerian masses.”
He also argued that the cashless policy implementation process has nothing to do with the National Assembly or APC ruling party, the electioneering campaign rallies going on across the country neither has any political undertone targeted at any political party or candidate across board.
The Upper Chamber of the National Assembly member noted also that, “the CBN cashless policy cannot be linked with politics or the forthcoming elections. It is of itself and from CBN not the President or APC or whatever. It is purely a CBN affair and people are suffering and complaining,” Ndume said.
