Naira Scarcity: Zenith Bank Staff Scale Fence To Escape Attack By Angry Customers

The scarcity of the Naira in Nigeria, Africa’s biggest economy, has taken a new dimension as bank customers protest alleged hoarding of notes by their banks.

A video has surfaced online capturing members of staff of Zenith Bank Plc in a branch in Delta State scaling the fence to escape attack by irate customers.

The video seen by THE WHISTLER shows over twelve members of staff of Zenith Bank who mounted a ladder at the back of the bank to escape from customers.

A staff member in the clip said they had involved the Delta Hawk Patrol team to control the situation.

But their move suggested that the patrol team was yet to arrive at the bank to calm the situation.

“You don’t need to be slow, be fast… They can’t enter,” a staff member was heard saying in the background.

When THE WHISTLER contacted the Police Public Relations Officer, Delta Command, Adafe Bright, he said the details of the incident were still unclear.

Bright however said that the incident occurred on Monday.

He said, “I can’t comment now because the information is sketchy. We have seen the video circulating on social media, but throughout yesterday, our men were at that branch till they closed. It might have happened in the bank premises which the men of the Police Force have not been able to lay concrete information about.”

Nigerian banks have been accused of frustrating the Naira redesign policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria.

The CBN in December 2022 unveiled new N1,000, N500, and N200 notes with a view to withdrawing the old notes by January 31, 2023, but the date was shifted by 10 days with a seven days grace period.

Although the CBN has been faulted by political actors, civil society organisations, and economists for the poor implementation, findings by THE WHISTLER showed that deposit money banks are also sabotaging the process.

In Abuja, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission arrested the operations manager of a commercial bank for hoarding N29m of the new notes.

The CBN has directed banks to load their ATMs with the new notes and also pay over the counter, but some banks are said to be conniving with big clients and depriving the retail depositors of their cash, the CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele had confirmed.

This act by banks has culminated in the grievances of bank customers.