The House of Representatives has directed the Central Bank Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefile to rescind the recent cash withdrawal policy.
The House also invited the CBN Governor to appear before it on Thursday next week.
This was sequel to a motion by a member from Jigawa State, Mr. Magaji Aliyu on the urgent need for the Central Bank Governor to rescind the recent cash withdrawal limit policy.
The lawmaker observed that small business owners based mainly in the rural areas are the major drivers of the nation’s economy.
These people according to him will be seriously affected by the new CBN directive.
“Acknowledged that the CBN has the right to issue monetary policies for the Nigerian economy, but the new policy would definitely have a negative impact on the already dwindling economy and further weakened the value of the nation’s currency.’
Contributing to the debate, a member from Kano State, Mr. Aminu Sulaiman, noted that most rural areas across the country have no banking services and have to travel to other areas to access these services.
He also faulted the limited time given to Nigerians to understand the policy and the failure of the apex bank to sensitize the people adequately.
The Minority Leader of the House, Mr. Ndudi Elumelu however, is of the view that a cashless policy would be of great benefit to Nigerians as it would curtail banditry, criminal activities as well as corruption in the country.
Ruling on the motion, the Speaker, Mr. Femi Gbajabiamila, directed the CBN to rescind the policy and also summoned him to appear before the House.
On Tuesday 6th December, 2022, the Apex bank announced a new monetary policy which pegged cash withdrawal per week for an individual at N100,000 and N500,000 for corporate organizations.