By Merit Ibe
A development and political economist, Dr Nathan Owhor, has argued that the #100, 000 withdrawal limit for individuals per week will ultimately hurt the domestic economy.
Owhor noted that the Nigerian economy is largely peasantry and cash driven, adding that the high population of very low income traders and artisans in the rural and urban areas pleasantly supports a cash economy.
He said the volume of buying and selling will surely be very low because most people will not have enough cash to meet their needs. “Clearly, most traders in the weekly and daily markets cannot sufficiently sell thereby increasing the rate of poverty and hunger in the society.
“The local markets deal largely with fresh vegetables and other perishable food items. The low volume of sales will further increase the proportion of food waste in the economy and further put pressure on poor Nigerians. This is made worse by poor public power supply.”
He further said the policy will therefore bring untold hardship on many Nigerians, calling on government to first seek ways to enhance the capacity of Nigerians, reduce illiteracy and increase access to cash wallets before pursuing a cashless policy as is the case in other developed and developing societies.