Some market women across Abuja have said the scarcity of bank notes which has affected their businesses would only serve as an encouragement for them to vote for the right person as president.
They vowed not to be deterred or discouraged, saying the right person must be voted for a better future.
Speaking separately with THE WHISTLER over the weekend while displaying their goods with no customer in sight, they expressed disappointment with the government, lamenting why the government did not think through the policy and considered the plight of the unbanked especially market women before embarking on the policy.
Advertisement
The Central Bank of Nigeria rolled out the policy a few weeks ago when it phased out certain denominations of the naira, the Nigerian currency of exchange.
The apex bank initially phased out N200, N500 and N1000.
It introduced new notes in those denominations and ordered those in possession of cash to return the money to the bank and ultimately the CBN offices nationwide.
The policy led to the scarcity of bank notes, pushing some Nigerians to attack bank offices as access to bank notes was curtailed.
President Muhammadu Buhari addressed the deplorable situation in a nationwide broadcast, and ordered the reintroduction of the old bank note of N200, to exist side by side with the old note for 60 days.
He however ruled out similar measures with the N500 and N1000 notes.
Despite that intervention, the scarcity of bank notes has not abated.
Among the worse hit are market women who have deplored the policy saying its application was fraught with insensitivity.
Narrating her ordeal, Madam Grace, who sells vegetables at the First Avenue Market, said “I didn’t have a bank account before now but I decided to open one with that bank there,” pointing at one of the new generation banks opposite where she sells on the roadside.
She explained that “But after I opened, paying me is still a wahala (problem) because of the bad network. We sometimes spend hours before the money will come.
“Then, some would pay me and show evidence but I will not see the money.
“Also, some come to buy tomatoes and pepper with N300, to transfer is a problem. They would be forced to buy on a higher amount to transfer.
“Sometimes they buy things and pair us because our market is for N50, N100, N300 – small amounts.
“So it’s hitting us hard,” she lamented.
Asked if the situation would push her to vote and would influence her choice of president, she said, “Well, more than before, I must vote. We all agreed to vote,” she said, gesturing to other women selling their goods close to her.
Waving to mean the entire market, she pointed out, “Before now, we know who is the best but with this, nothing will stop us from voting. We must vote and vote for the best man to change Nigeria,” she said.
Another fruit seller, Asabe, who sells her goods on a cart explained that “I don’t have an account, see my brother, (as he pointed to an elderly man selling fresh meat), he collects money for me, he has an account.
“My money is small. I am not a big woman to have an account. You buy and if you don’t have money, transfer it to my brother. I write it down later and he pays me.”
She vowed to travel to vote when pressed if she had a voter card. “Yes, I have. I will go to Kaduna. I will vote in the village.”
And why would she travel that far in the face of lack of money to vote, she said, “Transport is no problem. I travel every time with my brother selling meat to vote. This time is most important to vote.
“Wahala (problem) is too much. Too many problems. I will go and vote – I have seven children. I will travel with my husband and my brothers, together with my mother, my father, we would all vote.
“Yes, we would all vote for one person so that Nigeria can be better,” she revealed when asked if they all shared the same sentiment on who they would vote for.
At the Third Avenue corner shop in Gwarimpa, a woman who identified herself as Aisha and sells fresh yam lamented to our Correspondent that, “I don’t have to stop. Before my yam did not last three days but now, no one is buying.
“We now eat yam frequently. We don’t have money to buy food so we eat what we have.
“My husband is a bricklayer. He is also not getting a job again. The situation is terrible.
“When people buy now, I send them my husband’s bank account number and they pay. He must confirm the alert before they go.
“I have lost money because some alerts are fake, some get reversed but I can’t stop coming.”
Asked if she had her permanent voter card to vote, she answered in the affirmative saying, “yes oh! I have my PVC. That’s my life. My husband has too. My first daughter and my son too all have. We would vote for a better Nigeria.
“They are saying our votes would not count, that they will buy votes but we would vote.
“Some people came here to advise us to vote and not sell our votes otherwise we would suffer like before, and we agreed.
“Our voting center is at Dutse near Kubwa. So we would stay home on Friday to prepare and go early Saturday to vote,” she stated.
Also speaking of her plight, a plantain dealer at the Model Market Dutse, Madam Foluke, said, “Tell the government we are suffering. These people still want to come back after this suffering.
“Anyway, we would go and vote and vote for the right people. My husband is not doing anything because they can’t pay them.
“I sell less than N1000 a day and my plantain is spoiling because people can’t have money to buy.
“I’m tired. All we want is for us to vote and vote for the right people so our life can be better,” she said.
Speaking similarly, Ada who runs a shop and sells flours and other food items said, “My brother, we are in the hands of God. I’m tired of this country.
“See, I now have POS. Send money when you buy, the network would not agree. Fake alert every day. Transfer is a problem, cash is also a problem.
“Some days I return with less than N10,000 because people don’t have cash and they can’t transfer.
“I have never seen anything like this. Do you know out of annoyance I don’t eat sometimes when I come?”
And would she vote? She said,”Yes, why won’t I vote? Why? Do you like what’s happening? This is the best time to vote so that this suffering can end.
“This whole market, the women have held meetings upon meeting and our association advised that we must vote to change Nigeria.
“Nigeria must change. They advised us to vote for who we think is telling the truth and making promises that will work. We all know who he is.
“Once we say vote for who will better Nigeria, everybody shouts and claps. That is it my brother, this country must change,” she added.