Chairman of Akwa Ibom State Civil Service Commission, Mrs Ekerebong Umoh, has bemoaned the hardship being suffered by the people as a result of the cashless policy introduced by the Godwin Emefiele-led Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Umoh, who bared her mind at the funeral ceremony of Late Elder (Mrs) Maginah Elkanah Akpabio, at the weekend, at Edem Idim Ishiet in Onna area of the state, said the poor network often experienced, while using bank apps in mobile phones or through the POS system during transactions and the long queues under the harsh sunlight and in the rain for hours, are avoidable pains inflicted by the CBN on the people.
She observed that sometimes people return home after long wait without cash, leaving them hopeless and in very desperate situation.
She thanked Nigerians for their tolerance, patience and resilience in the face of the hardship.
“Ordinarily, a cashless economy, as practised in developed countries, is a very seamless financial practice but in Nigeria, the terrible sufferings placed on the people by the Emefiele’s-led CBN is turning the policy into a tale of woes.
“People can no longer buy fruits, not even udara, due to lack of money and those, who have money, now use it as an escape route not to assist the poor and the needy around them. The common parlance now is – ‘you know we are now cashless,” the CSC chairman stressed.
She expressed sympathy for members of the bereaved family because, according to her, she can only imagine the torture they went through in organising the funeral ceremony under the terrible poor cash situation in the land.
In his contribution, a former Permanent Secretary from the State Civil Service, Mrs. Ikemesit Ekpro, also lamented the poor execution of the cashless policy, pointing out that in other climes, the people would have vehemently protested or revolted against the inhuman treatment meted on them. She thanked Nigerians for stunning the world by remaining calm and focused in the face of hardship.
“In other climes, the elections wouldn’t have held with so much pains and uncertainty, but we calmly went through the election processes successfully,” Ekpro stated.
She congratulated the bereaved family for sailing through the harsh monetary condition to host a very commendable burial for their late mother, who she described as a “no-nonsense woman”, in her days.
Speaking too on the pains of the cashless economy, the representative of the Commissioner for Information and Strategy and Director, Public Relations, Mrs Grace Akpan, expressed optimism that the sufferings will soon be over and urged Nigerians to maintain patience, tolerance and resilience.
A daughter of the departed and Principal Information officer at the Akwa Ibom State Liaison Office, Lagos, Mrs. Grace Edem, thanked the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Ini Ememobong, the Permanent Secretary, Akparawa James Edet, the management and staff of the Ministry for according their late mother the last respect.
