“Change” Wahala
At Mile 2 bridge, Lagos, a large crowd were waiting for a bus to go home after their day’s job. It had rained cat and dog that day so there was a vehicular traffic, which held the commuter buses behind. So as soon as a bus eventually arrived, the passengers rushed to board the bus. “Osodi Oke straight N200.00 bus. Hold your change o. If you no get change no enter o. Conductor no get sense o”. This was the conductor of the bus shouting, warning the passengers ahead that he had no change.
This reporter was among the lucky ones that struggled and got a space in the bus. Before the bus could get to second rainbow bus-stop along Osodi-Apapa expressway, the conductor started collecting the transport fare from his passengers. One of the passengers handed a N500 note to the conductor. As soon as the conductor discovered it was N500 note, he shouted, “I told you to hold your change. Driver, match am, let this man go down”.
When the driver of the bus stopped, the conductor insisted that the passenger must go down from the vehicle, and warned other passengers who did not have “change” to equally go down from the bus.
“Change” has become a problem in the metropolitan city of Lagos and environs to the extent that people even fight with conductors. At Jakande gate, Ejigbo, there was a case between Emeka Chika, a conductor of a danfo bus with his passengers. As the passenger wanted to alert, he held the conductor’s shirt demanding his change, “Hand it over to me”, cried the passenger, and the conductor replied “No change”.
Another passenger gave the conductor N500 and he reacted “I no get change, you better go down”. When the reporter confronted him he lamented, “It has been like this since last year, when passengers will not come with their complete change. Once they enter the bus, they go give me N1,000 or N500, and I fit no get change. If I ask them to go down from the bus, some of them go beat me or hold my shirt until I produce their change”.
This problem of “change” is as a result of scarcity of lower currency denominations in the country such as N5, N10, N20, N50, N100 and N200.
Conductors and passengers are not the only ones experiencing this “change” problem. Petty traders too, are not left out because virtually they use and transact with these currencies. The acute scarcity has lead to loss of sales, and quarrel with customers. Some of them lament their experiences.
Iyabo Balogun a soft drink seller at Ikotun round about shared her many encounters, but just right there as she was speaking with the reporter, a woman wanted to buy N10 pure water and gave Balogun N50. When she discovered that customer was going to buy just N10 pure water she said, “change no dey”. When the reporter confronted Balogun, she replied, “How can I give her change of N40 for only N10 market. Abeg let her go”
“Change no dey”, has become traders language. Mrs. Christiana Obike, a petty trader at Ijesha market, Surulere, Lagos, complained that the scarcity of lower denomination especially N10, N20 and N50 is seriously affecting her business. “Sometimes my customers go away because I don’t have change to give them. Nobody wants to leave his or her change with you especially at this time of economic hardship in Nigeria. This limits sales and makes me record losses”.
A bar tender in one of the restaurants at Okota, Lagos, Mr Shina Lawal, lamented how the scarcity has affected their business as sometimes he would leave the counter to source for lower Naira denomination, leaving customers unserved. “This limits our daily sales. Sometimes we urge customers to use the Point of Sale (POS) terminal to save us the time of sourcing for their balance, but some of them reject this option because they are afraid of ATM fraud.
However, another petty trader, Mr. John Okeke, said the scarcity of lower Naira denomination doesn’t affect his business but the mutilated, dirty and smelly notes does. “The only problem I am experiencing is that of the mutilated, faded and burnt polymer notes that are in circulation. Sometimes customers reject it, but they expect you to take it from them when they bring it”.
Mr Okeke urged the government to release new notes as most customers reject the bad ones which tends to hinder his sales.
Keke NAPEP drivers and Okada riders are also caught in this difficult situation. Sharing his experience, Mr. George Dike, a Keke NAPEP operator, described the situation as very bad, and urged The CBN to do something about it. “They should release new notes.”
Lamenting the negative impact of this scarcity on their businesses, the MICRO, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) operators urged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to sustain the direct distribution of the lower denominations, which it commenced lately in Abuja.
However, following the adoption of a motion by Senator Peter Nwaoboshi (Delta-North) titled, ‘Scarcity of Lower Denomination Currency Notes,’ the Senate resolved to mandate the joint Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions; and Finance to investigate the scarcity.
The committee was further asked to proffer lasting solution to the issue and report back within two weeks.
In the motion, Nwaoboshi said, “The Senate notes with serious concern the protracted scarcity of lower naira denominations.
“It is concerned that scarcity of N5, N10, N20, N50, N100 and N200 notes poses a severe threat to the economy of the nation, which is just recovering from recession, as it is worsening inflationary trends, with attendant consequences.
“The Senate notes that the nation’s currency is highly essential and critical in national development; and if mismanaged, the economy is doomed with adverse effect on the people and the nation.
“The Senate is worried that banks in Nigeria no longer dispense lower Naira denominations, with the excuse that they hardly receive them from the Central Bank of Nigeria.
“The Senate is worried also that reports in the media over the issue are not cheery at all.”
The senator stressed that the lower denominations were printed and procured outside the country with the attendant economic and security implications.
“The Senate notes further that if the situation is not remedied urgently, it may lead to total collapse of the economy,” Nwaoboshi stated.
Seconding the motion, Senator Magnus Abe stated that the lower denominations remained a legal tender in the country and decried their scarcity in the polity.
Abe warned that deliberate attempts by some forces to reject the lower denominations from effective circulation might make currency regulators to lose control of the process.
In response to the distress call, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recently rolled out a campaign to inject lower currency denominations into the financial system with a view to stemming their shortage which has elicited the clamour by traders and regular users for the Bank’s intervention.
To address the scarcity of the lower denominations, including N100, N50, N20, N10 and N5, the CBN jump-started a sensitisation exercise at the popular Wuse market in Abuja.
However, the Director of Currency Operations, CBN, Mrs. Priscilla Eleje, blamed the scarcity of lower Naira denomination on unscrupulous members of the society. Mrs. Eleje, who spoke during the exercise, said the central bank was unhappy that lower denomination Naira notes were in short supply, assuring that the bank would address the challenge headlong.
She said that N50, N20, N10 and N5 notes would be channelled to traders through their associations in markets across the nation. “The CBN will intervene on a weekly basis in the immediate and later respond based on demand”, she said.
However, she blamed the scarcity of lower Naira denomination on unscrupulous members of the society and cautioned against hoarding and cloning of the notes, adding that anyone caught would be made to face the full wrath of the law.
This reporter was among the lucky ones that struggled and got a space in the bus. Before the bus could get to second rainbow bus-stop along Osodi-Apapa expressway, the conductor started collecting the transport fare from his passengers. One of the passengers handed a N500 note to the conductor. As soon as the conductor discovered it was N500 note, he shouted, “I told you to hold your change. Driver, match am, let this man go down”.
When the driver of the bus stopped, the conductor insisted that the passenger must go down from the vehicle, and warned other passengers who did not have “change” to equally go down from the bus.
“Change” has become a problem in the metropolitan city of Lagos and environs to the extent that people even fight with conductors. At Jakande gate, Ejigbo, there was a case between Emeka Chika, a conductor of a danfo bus with his passengers. As the passenger wanted to alert, he held the conductor’s shirt demanding his change, “Hand it over to me”, cried the passenger, and the conductor replied “No change”.
Another passenger gave the conductor N500 and he reacted “I no get change, you better go down”. When the reporter confronted him he lamented, “It has been like this since last year, when passengers will not come with their complete change. Once they enter the bus, they go give me N1,000 or N500, and I fit no get change. If I ask them to go down from the bus, some of them go beat me or hold my shirt until I produce their change”.
This problem of “change” is as a result of scarcity of lower currency denominations in the country such as N5, N10, N20, N50, N100 and N200.
Conductors and passengers are not the only ones experiencing this “change” problem. Petty traders too, are not left out because virtually they use and transact with these currencies. The acute scarcity has lead to loss of sales, and quarrel with customers. Some of them lament their experiences.
Iyabo Balogun a soft drink seller at Ikotun round about shared her many encounters, but just right there as she was speaking with the reporter, a woman wanted to buy N10 pure water and gave Balogun N50. When she discovered that customer was going to buy just N10 pure water she said, “change no dey”. When the reporter confronted Balogun, she replied, “How can I give her change of N40 for only N10 market. Abeg let her go”
“Change no dey”, has become traders language. Mrs. Christiana Obike, a petty trader at Ijesha market, Surulere, Lagos, complained that the scarcity of lower denomination especially N10, N20 and N50 is seriously affecting her business. “Sometimes my customers go away because I don’t have change to give them. Nobody wants to leave his or her change with you especially at this time of economic hardship in Nigeria. This limits sales and makes me record losses”.
A bar tender in one of the restaurants at Okota, Lagos, Mr Shina Lawal, lamented how the scarcity has affected their business as sometimes he would leave the counter to source for lower Naira denomination, leaving customers unserved. “This limits our daily sales. Sometimes we urge customers to use the Point of Sale (POS) terminal to save us the time of sourcing for their balance, but some of them reject this option because they are afraid of ATM fraud.
However, another petty trader, Mr. John Okeke, said the scarcity of lower Naira denomination doesn’t affect his business but the mutilated, dirty and smelly notes does. “The only problem I am experiencing is that of the mutilated, faded and burnt polymer notes that are in circulation. Sometimes customers reject it, but they expect you to take it from them when they bring it”.
Mr Okeke urged the government to release new notes as most customers reject the bad ones which tends to hinder his sales.
Keke NAPEP drivers and Okada riders are also caught in this difficult situation. Sharing his experience, Mr. George Dike, a Keke NAPEP operator, described the situation as very bad, and urged The CBN to do something about it. “They should release new notes.”
Lamenting the negative impact of this scarcity on their businesses, the MICRO, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) operators urged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to sustain the direct distribution of the lower denominations, which it commenced lately in Abuja.
However, following the adoption of a motion by Senator Peter Nwaoboshi (Delta-North) titled, ‘Scarcity of Lower Denomination Currency Notes,’ the Senate resolved to mandate the joint Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions; and Finance to investigate the scarcity.
The committee was further asked to proffer lasting solution to the issue and report back within two weeks.
In the motion, Nwaoboshi said, “The Senate notes with serious concern the protracted scarcity of lower naira denominations.
“It is concerned that scarcity of N5, N10, N20, N50, N100 and N200 notes poses a severe threat to the economy of the nation, which is just recovering from recession, as it is worsening inflationary trends, with attendant consequences.
“The Senate notes that the nation’s currency is highly essential and critical in national development; and if mismanaged, the economy is doomed with adverse effect on the people and the nation.
“The Senate is worried that banks in Nigeria no longer dispense lower Naira denominations, with the excuse that they hardly receive them from the Central Bank of Nigeria.
“The Senate is worried also that reports in the media over the issue are not cheery at all.”
The senator stressed that the lower denominations were printed and procured outside the country with the attendant economic and security implications.
“The Senate notes further that if the situation is not remedied urgently, it may lead to total collapse of the economy,” Nwaoboshi stated.
Seconding the motion, Senator Magnus Abe stated that the lower denominations remained a legal tender in the country and decried their scarcity in the polity.
Abe warned that deliberate attempts by some forces to reject the lower denominations from effective circulation might make currency regulators to lose control of the process.
In response to the distress call, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recently rolled out a campaign to inject lower currency denominations into the financial system with a view to stemming their shortage which has elicited the clamour by traders and regular users for the Bank’s intervention.
To address the scarcity of the lower denominations, including N100, N50, N20, N10 and N5, the CBN jump-started a sensitisation exercise at the popular Wuse market in Abuja.
However, the Director of Currency Operations, CBN, Mrs. Priscilla Eleje, blamed the scarcity of lower Naira denomination on unscrupulous members of the society. Mrs. Eleje, who spoke during the exercise, said the central bank was unhappy that lower denomination Naira notes were in short supply, assuring that the bank would address the challenge headlong.
She said that N50, N20, N10 and N5 notes would be channelled to traders through their associations in markets across the nation. “The CBN will intervene on a weekly basis in the immediate and later respond based on demand”, she said.
However, she blamed the scarcity of lower Naira denomination on unscrupulous members of the society and cautioned against hoarding and cloning of the notes, adding that anyone caught would be made to face the full wrath of the law.
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