By Tony Okafor
As Nigerians struggle to access cash, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) must take bold and decisive action to address this issue.
A crucial starting point is engaging Point of Sale (PoS) operators as official agents of cash distribution.
The current situation is absurd.
Despite the CBN’s efforts to maintain a robust cash buffer, Nigerians are unable to access cash from banks and ATMs.
Instead, they rely on cash dealers who exploit the situation by selling cash in bulk.
Petrol stations, restaurants, and supermarket operators sell their cash instead of depositing it in banks, perpetuating the cycle of cash scarcity.
This phenomenon is nothing short of cash commoditization, where cash is treated as a scarce commodity rather than a readily available medium of exchange.
Furthermore, commercial banks are also complicit in cash racketeering, as some bankers are visibly owners of PoS businesses, even in front of their banks.
The CBN must crack down on these saboteurs who profit from the suffering of Nigerians.
Engaging PoS operators as official agents of cash distribution would be a game-changer. It would not only end the apparent sabotage but also provide Nigerians with a convenient and reliable means of accessing cash, reducing the influence of cash dealers and saboteurs.
We commend the CBN’s steps to penalize banks that fail to provide cash to customers. However, more needs to be done to address the root causes of cash scarcity.
By engaging PoS operators and cracking down on saboteurs, the CBN can restore the integrity of the financial system and ensure Nigerians have access to cash.
The Nigerian people deserve better. It is time for the CBN to take bold action and end the cash scarcity menace once and for all.
