Cashless Policy: ‘They Tell Us When ATMs Are Loaded’- How POS Operators Exploit Enugu Residents

Operators of Point of Sales, popularly called POS, are major beneficiaries of the federal government’s cashless policy and its attendant economic hardship.

A survey conducted by THE WHISTLER in Enugu revealed that POS operators have devised means of hijacking naira notes put at various ATMs located within and outside bank premises.

Benjamin Eze operates at Presidential Road in Enugu. He told our correspodent that ‘this time of paucity of naira notes is a time to make more money’.

According to him, “I have three persons working for me. Because of the current situation, our contacts working in banks always tell us when they put money in ATMs. So, we go very early, and obtain numbers ahead of time. One of us can go and get numbers for others.

“The highest amount for withdrawal is N20, 000. We jointly have many bank accounts. They are not necessarily our own, but our friends and relatives. We transfer money there during our businesses. So at ATMs, we can withdraw from ten bank accounts separately. We then return and start charging customers N3, 000 per N10, 000.”

Another operator at Otigba junction, Mercy, also charges N3, 000 for each N10, 000 withdrawn.

She said, “Before, my ‘oga’ gets money from bank officials. He collects like N500, 000, and pays them. But nowadays, filling stations are our major sources of new naira notes. They call us when they get up to N200, 000. We pay N1000 for each N10, 000. Some customers can pay N50, 000 for N500, 000 at once. It is negotiable. Some just want big money, and they keep their contacts with us.”

Another operator, who did not disclose her name, said she gets new naira notes from transporters. According to her, “Commercial drivers always have new notes to transact. If you have access to big transport companies, you will surely break even.”

Meanwhile, some operators are gradually shutting down in the metropolis. A mother of two, Claret Onoyima, said, “I have not been doing anything for about a week now. No cash. Some customers come for transfers, but they have stopped. Others do pay bills through us, but they too have stopped coming.

“I can’t access my money in the bank. My cashier customer told me that some big men are always waiting to collect new notes on arrival. I think politicians are causing this problem. They work with bank managers.”