Abuja residents groan over escalating cash crunch

By Ezra Ukanwa, Abuja

The escalating cash scarcity in banks has left residents of the federal capital territory grappling with frustration and inconvenience.

www.currenttimesng.com reports that bank customers and even Point of Sale, POS, operators in Abuja have been struggling to withdraw cash from Automated Teller Machines, ATMs and are often faced with long queues and limited services at banking halls.

Our correspondent who visited First Bank, Fidelity Bank, Zenith Bank in Nyanya, and Guarantee Trust Bank, GTB, in Mararaba, observed numerous complaints lodged at these banks by customers over the uneasy situation they find themselves in.

Our correspondent noticed that a lot of the bank branches had ATMs that were not working, and there were extremely long lines inside the banking halls.

Some of the bank customers who spoke to our correspondent said that they have been forced to make multiple visits to different banks in the hopes of obtaining some much-needed cash.

“I have been to three different banks today and none of them has enough cash to give me. It’s very frustrating; we can’t even access our own money when we need it the most”, says Bola Adeyemi, a civil servant residing in Abuja.

Another customer at First Bank Nyanya, Abuja, Eno Effiong, said: “It’s frustrating that we’re living in the capital city and still facing such cash scarcity issues. I came to the bank to withdraw N15, 000 but I was told I could only get N10, 000. I mean, isn’t Abuja supposed to be one of the most developed and well-equipped cities in Nigeria? It’s high time the government acted upon this and ensured that banks have enough cash to cater to our needs.”

A Nasarawa state polytechnic student, Apindo Patience, said: “I just don’t understand why they can’t manage the cash flow properly in the banks. It’s not like Abuja is a small town with limited resources. The inconvenience caused by this scarcity is undeniable, especially when we have important bills to pay and can’t access the desired amounts of money from our own accounts.”

An Abuja trader who identified herself as Genevieve Johnson, said: “The lack of cash in the banks has definitely made life more difficult for us. Even simple tasks like grocery shopping or paying for transportation become a hassle when you can’t withdraw the required cash. It’s causing unnecessary stress and inconvenience in our daily lives.”

Except for one bank employee who casually and anonymously mentioned that the bank cannot provide cash exceeding N20,000, all attempts to obtain comments from other bank officials were unsuccessful as they refused to comment on the matter.

For more read visit: www.currenttimesng.com

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We Africans were meant to be the richest, most intelligent and happiest race on the planet, but we never ready to get sense.