Sanusi Lamido, CBN Governor
By Onwuka Nzeshi
The House of Representatives Tuesday summoned the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, over the controversy surrounding the proposed policy of the apex bank to limit daily cash withdrawals by bank customers to N150,000 for individuals and N1 million for corporate organisations.
A resolution passed by the lower chamber of the parliament directed Sanusi to appear before the lawmakers tomorrow to offer explanations on the new proposal and other sundry policies of the apex bank which, in the perception of the public, might have some negative impacts on the populace.
The House will also Thursday at plenary deliberate on the alarming rate of road accidents being recorded on the Nyanya/ Mararaba expressway in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
Hon Zephaniah Jisalo, member representing AMAC/Bwari Federal Constituency, Abuja had drawn the attention of the House to the multiple ghastly road accidents which claimed over 20 lives on the road on Monday and demanded an end to such incidents.
The House observed a minute silence in honour of those who lost their lives in the latest fatal road accident.
The cash withdrawal limitation policy which is billed to take effect from June next year, has been roundly condemned by a cross section of Nigerians particularly politicians who claimed that the country was not ready for the envisaged switch to a cashless economy.
Sanusi will also be expected to answer questions on the equally controversial policy of Islamic banking, an issue that has pitted him against the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and raised more questions than answers on the constitutional status of Nigeria as a secular state.
The summon followed a motion sponsored by Hon. Aliyu Yakubu (PDP Yobe) in which the lawmaker alerted the chamber on the implications of the policy.
Yakubu argued that the daily cash withdrawal limitation would cause undue hardship to citizens of the country as hundreds of communities in Nigeria have no commercial banks, microfinance banks and have no access to the Automated Teller Machines (ATM) through which they could make multiple withdrawals to meet their daily cash needs.
He expressed concern that the policy would affect local farmers and traders who have no banks in their localities, adding that while the move to make Nigeria a cashless society was commendable, there were a lot of logistic challenges that could make the policy impracticable in the country.
Yakubu also argued that the policy might be an effort in futility considering the current scenario where inter-banks transactions carried out even in major cities and urban centres take at least 48 hours to be completed.
In the substantive motion, the lawmaker urged the CBN to extend the deadline to enable commercial banks to expand their branch networks to the rural communities which were not currently enjoying banking services.
He tasked the CBN to enunciate a new policy that would encourage banks to establish outlets in the rural areas just as he tasked Sanusi to prevail on commercial banks to improve their information technology facilities to enhance speedy transactions wherever they operate.
In a contribution to the debate, a former Chairman, House Committee on Banking and Currency, Hon. Ogbuefi Ozomgbachi, urged the House to intervene in the controversy and ensure that the CBN introduced measures that would not only advance the banking sector but impact positively on Nigerians.
Ozomgbachi said that while reforms were needed in the banking sector, any new policy must be designed and promoted in such a way that Nigerians were not made to suffer unnecessarily.
Ruling in favour of the summon, Speaker of the House, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, said the House needed to be properly informed on the proposal as well as other sundry policies including the vexed non-interest banking policy recently introduced by the CBN.
He said the explanations expected from Sanusi would enable the House to make informed decisions and take appropriate action in the interest of the public.
“We need more information to take proper action on these proposals. To this end, the governor of the Central Bank should appear before the House on Thursday at 10am,” Tambuwal said.
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