CBN Governor Mr. Godwin Emefiele Drives Nigerians Like Slaves By Peregrino Brimah

On the 13th of April this year, the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN circulated a notice that “with immediate effect,” the withdrawal limit from Naira debit cards abroad will be reduced to $300/day to a total of $50,000/year from where it stood at thrice that: $900/day and $150,000/year.

This order by the CBN was a result of a meeting of the Bankers Committee just a week prior. I repeat that; “just a week prior.”

In attendance at that meeting were bankers, one of whom spoke at the April 13th press briefing. Union Bank Managing Director/Chief Executive, Mr. Emeka Emuwa said, “We realise that people were using the cards in a manner they were not expected to use them. There were some arbitrage going on, and in order to continue to support the stability in the foreign exchange market. So it was agreed at the committee that the limit would be reduced for the use of the naira debit cards. You will still have, as a customer, unfettered access to your dollar account (cards) but for the naira cards, the limit will be reduced to a judicious level.”

It is unbelievable!

No country in the world drives its people like slaves as these.

No responsible country in the world imposes such withdrawal limits on its citizenry and never with such notice…“with immediate effect from the date of announcement, and just one week after a so-called decision making meeting of the slave drivers.”

Were the people, clients, also invited to attend and come to the decision and conclusion the bankers and CBN arrived at? We know we had no representative.

Were the so-called arbitrageurs to blame for the fall in the dollar as the bankers accused us or was it the PDP presidential campaign billions of dollars rain to all and sundry including OPC and MASOB that led to a crash in naira?

Did the CBN and bankers have the right to make such sudden and drastic cut if at all, and not a gradual one – if at all – in respect of citizen rights?

What other factors are to blame for the instability in the forex market? What role does money laundering and authorized carting of millions of dollars in suitcases to South Africa for instance, have to play in it? Why are these other factors not sternly and whimsically addressed by Godwin, including the withdrawal of sums as large as $9.3 million dollars in suitcases (which is meant to be impossible under CBN rules?). Why must the masses suffer always for crimes of the immunity and life-pension seeking, constitution re-writing-for-personal-gain, cabal?

As Mr. Godwin from the infamous Zenith Bank was appointed CBN chair, we warned of the additional changes to be expected as a Bankers’ man replaced another Bankers’ man. We said then that we can expect more policies in favor of the banks and to the death of the people. [See: A Banks Man: Expect Higher Charges with Godwin Emefiele as New CBN Gov-ENDS.ng, 21st Feb 2014]

As though the mentioned pre-existing extensive list of Nigeria-unique extortive charges our banks are authorized to make, extorting us like slaves, was not enough, at every meeting these vampires conjure-up other means of ripping the people off and frustrating our meager existences: withdrawal limits, cash transaction limits, charges to receive bank texts, charges to transfer, COT, charges to receive, charges to replace ATM cards. The list goes on and on.

Abroad you are charged nothing, zilch to keep your money in the bank. In fact you get perks per every transaction you make, it is called “REWARDS,” the banks are happy to have your money and handle your business so they reward you. But this is not so in Nigeria where blood-sucking banshees connive to rip Nigerians off at every turn as supported by inebriated government officials most interested in receiving payment for life for the nothing that they do other than the thuggery and  terror they promote.

One day we will eat them.

Dr. Peregrino Brimah; http://ENDS.ng [Every Nigerian Do Something] Email: drbrimah@ends.ng Twitter: @EveryNigerian