”In our meetings with the banks, we have told them to set up tents and chairs, give people numbers." These were the words of The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, who appealed to Nigerians days ago to show understanding about circulation and the accessibility of the new Naira Notes.
Emefiele had noted that he was seeing the protests and arguments surrounding the difficulty citizens were facing in accessing the new notes and therefore begged people to show understanding and be calm.
However, how else can man's inhumanity to another be described than subjecting your fellow to untold hardship and not concerned?
This was the case of one of the leading financial banks in Nigeria, Sterling Bank. Migrating from an identity and slogan of 'The one-customer bank' to 'Your one-customer bank', Sterling Bank has found it so difficult to fulfill its mandate to its teeming customers.
An on the spot accessment of some of their branches mostly between Lagos and Ogun suburbs by Omonaijablog.com.ng, showed that CBN Governor's appeal to the banks to at least show some level of respect and humanity to their respective customers is not of a concern to Sterling Bank.
Omonaijablog reports that as early as 6am this morning, customers in their numbers had converged at one of the Sterling Bank's branch close to Alagbole Road, Ojodu, with most of them sitting on bare floor!
Young, old, married, single, businessmen and women, students in their numbers sitting on the floor, some hanging beside the walls of the bank waiting for when the bank's ATMs will be loaded and till past 9am when a reporter of Omonaijablog left the premises, there was no cash at sight.
Some who could not access the bank over the weekend were seen begging, pleading and cursing! The scene was pathetic. Seeing people wearing sad emotions on a Monday morning isn't a not a good omen for the week. Something must be done!
Let us even ask ourselves, what would it cost the bank to hire few dozens of plastic chairs? Why would people go through such difficulties to withdraw their hard-earned money deposited in a bank legally?
How long do people need to be on queue before the ATMs will be loaded? How many 'rich guys' were on queue, yet they were the first to get the new notes?
What exactly do we refer to as customer service? And that is why notes were available in parties: birthdays, burials etc. Being thrown about and trampled upon in ecstacy at events. Propelled by choice wine and spirit, the rich flaunted the new currency and exposed the conspiracy with the banks.
This was the same bank whose one of the managers was arrested and paraded by CBN's monitoring team over the week in Ado Ekiti for hoarding about #6 million new notes in the bank's vault.
In a trending video on social media as reported by Omonaijablog.com.ng, a man who identified himself as Oluwole Owoeye, a deputy director of CBN, while monitoring the distribution of the new naira notes in the state, was seen questioning the bank officials as to why they have not uploaded the funds into their Automated Teller Machines, (ATMs), despite having six of the machines in place.
And to serve as deterrent, the CBN director also announced a fine of N1 million for each day the fund was in the bank’s custody.
These commercial banks should know that the situation in Nigeria now is a terrible one and its eating deep on the downtrodden masses.
So, their efforts at sabotaging the whole process should be jointly condemned by all well meaning nigerians. Or how best can you describe a bank manager who hoards and sell the new Naira Notes to the highest bidder?
This is definitely not how to lead a nation to prosperity. People are passing through pains!