That the Naira scarcity has brought untold hardship on Nigerians is no subject of debate.
However, following the Supreme Court’s ruling that the old Naira notes should remain legal tender till December 31, 2023, Nigerians were hoping for some relief or reprieve.
But it wasn’t to be.
The Quest Times spoke with residents of Abraka, Delta State, who painted a picture of hardship, frustration and risk taking as the fallout of the cash crunch and non-acceptance of old banknotes.
This reporter, on his way to withdraw money from a POS operator, got a better understanding of how the Naira notes scarcity has made life even more difficult and dangerous for Deltans.
On getting to the PoS spot, I was told the charge was N400 on every N1000. Following my protest over the high charge, the operator revealed the difficulty and risk involved in making sure he had cash to disburse in the first instance.
Joshua the POS operator, stated that it is near impossible to get new notes and the acceptable N100 and N200 notes from banks in Abraka. He revealed that he had to go to Amai, another town in Delta, to get money from a petrol station.
“Bros you no fit get new notes for Abraka. I go bank na old notes dem give and dem no dey collect am back.
“I had to go to Amai after Obiaruku to get money from a petrol station, I got back to Abraka by 11 in the night. In fact my motorcycle brake failed, I had to move small small with torchlight in the night,” he said.
Joshua also discussed the hardship he has experienced in trying to resolve failed transactions due to the jammed bank networks which still resulted in him being debited.
“It is not just the scarcity, even the network is a problem. I had one N57,000 transaction that failed, it took me 3 months before I got my money back.
“This whole Naira issue has been very hard on POS operators. Government should just allow everything go back to normal,” he lamented.
He further revealed how a fellow POS operator had been invited to the police station over failed transactions.
I also had a conversation with a motorcycle rider (Okada) who revealed that I was the first customer to give him cash.
When I reacted in disbelief, he opened his money bag which was empty, to confirm his statement.
He stated that a lot of people still had old notes with them, but he’s hesitant to collect them, as the places he can spend them remain limited (some petrol stations). Hence he and his passengers resort to using the transfer option.
Oseme, a student of the Delta State University (DELSU) in Abraka, lamented the confusion over the old Naira notes. He revealed that he was given N10,000 in old notes, but when he couldn’t spend it, he returned to the bank to deposit it, and to his shock, the teller refused to receive the old notes.
“I went to bank to collect money, after struggling to get in I withdrew N5,000 in old notes. I went to buy some things in the market and some shops. To my surprise, the notes were rejected. I told them Supreme Court has said the money should be collected. Nobody listened.
“I went back to the bank to return it and they refused. Bros, the way I provoke ehn!! E no make sense na, bank and CBN just dey use people dey play and we dey suffer.
“You get money for bank you no fit collect am, you go POS, those ones go dey charge stupid charge. Bros, the thing tire me,” he said.
Idolor, an attendant at the bar in one of the numerous hotels in Abraka, stated that despite the fact that the scarcity has caused hardship, it hasn’t really affected operations, as the regular customers who are students from the nearby university, were already used to paying with transfer and POS before the scarcity struck.
According to her, the main issue is that the networks could be so bad and the POS and transfer options won’t work.
On the issue of fake alerts, she stated that they only allow customers leave after confirming payment from the bank app, and not just sms alert.
Favour, a petty trader in a small market, lamented that the Naira scarcity has disrupted her business, leading to a drop in sales, among other issues.
“Selling now is very difficult, there’s no money to buy things, it’s hard to sell because people don’t have new notes, and I can’t collect old notes because nobody will collect it from me.
“Even the transfer, I don’t like it, because some boys will come and buy and when they transfer, it is fake alert you will see.
“So now things are very difficult. Buhari and CBN should do something. We are suffering too much,” she said.