Senate to debate CBN's new cash withdrawal policy next week

The Senate, will next week, debate a motion on the new cash withdrawal policy recently announced by the Central Bank of Nigerians.

The lawmakers are expected to make and adopt resolutions to either support or kick against the policy.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how the apex bank, in a memo on Tuesday, announced a limit on cash withdrawals made by individuals and organisations with effect from 9 January.

The bank directed that over-the-counter cash withdrawals by individuals and corporate entities do not exceed N100, 000 and N500, 000, respectively, per week. It also directed that only N200 and lower denominations should be loaded into banks’ ATMs.

It said the maximum cash withdrawal per week via ATM should be N100,000 subject to a maximum of N20,000 cash withdrawal per day.

At plenary on Wednesday, some senators raised concerns about the new policy with fears that many Nigerians will be affected negatively.

The Senate Minority Leader, Philip Aduda, raised a point of order on the issue and called for his colleagues to deliberate upon it.

He was however interrupted by the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, who said it is too early to debate the policy.

The way the CBN is going about the policy, many Nigerians would be cut off and that will not be accepted, he said, as he suggested that a motion be brought forward for deliberation next week.

He also directed the committee on Banking, Insurance and other Financial Institutions, in charge of screening the newly nominated deputy governors for the apex bank, to grill the nominees on the policy.

“Motion on the policy will be thoroughly debated in the Senate on Tuesday next week after adequate information has been gotten on it,” he said. “Before Tuesday next week, our committee on Banking, Insurance and other Financial Institutions mandated to screen the re-appointed Deputy Governors of the Central Bank, should focus its questions on the planned policy.

“The CBN Deputy Governors must be thoroughly drilled on the policy after which extensive debate on it will be made by Senators on Tuesday next week,” he said.