FCTA restricts PoS operators to commercial areas

The Federal Capital Territory Administration has directed Pointmof Sales terminal operators to restrict their operations to only commercial areas.

While addressing journalists in Abuja on Wednesday, the Coordinator, Abuja Metropolitan Management Council, Umar Shuaibu, said the administration would not allow PoS operators illegally take over sensitive areas not designated for commercial purposes.

Shuaibu said the indiscriminate activities of the operators had become a threat to security and would no longer be tolerated. He explained that the Abuja Master plan was systemically structured to have the neighbourhood concept, that would bring all services closer to the people.

He said, “We have neighbourhood centres and city centres; all of these centres have commercial areas, so whatever someone needs within the neighbourhood is available, no need to take over the street, that is how the master plan was designed. Financial services are brought closer to the people because of the CBN cashless policy; that is why we have PoS operators, let there be sanity.

“However, there are challenges; the points of sale operators do not operate in the areas that they are supposed to operate according to the provision of the master plan. We have commercial centres, plazas, markets, supermarkets, and filling stations, these are areas for commercial activities. So, the PoS operators have to liaise with owners of these properties for their services, this is in line with international best practices.

“Henceforth, all PoS operators must relocate to commercial areas and liaise with the premises’ owners, where their services are needed. This will help check mate insecurity. The Minister of the FCT has given us the directives to ensure that all illegal PoS operators should relocate to appropriate areas”.

Similarly, the Senior Special Assistant on Monitoring, Inspection and Enforcement to the Minister of FCT, Mr Ikharo Attah, said the administration was in support of the PoS activities, and the CBN cashless policy, but expressed concerns for security.