Welcome to Victor Eke's blog: CBN

'MMM Is A Fraudulent Scheme' - CBN Warns Nigerians

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdd75gdKUXQn_WV2z9bp2N5TO5OFoM2YO9MZcfggM7MI_uoR5HuWnxFZSIuQXt17LcuqVACRH1Bqiw0tlm3V5du0Iymjb8yQWBLGT3ixR5dmH1LVzIwpmZPb0bpCWKGsoBcRYRuYW5BZUv/s2560/%25255BUNSET%25255D.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdd75gdKUXQn_WV2z9bp2N5TO5OFoM2YO9MZcfggM7MI_uoR5HuWnxFZSIuQXt17LcuqVACRH1Bqiw0tlm3V5du0Iymjb8yQWBLGT3ixR5dmH1LVzIwpmZPb0bpCWKGsoBcRYRuYW5BZUv/s640/%25255BUNSET%25255D.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;"/></a>The Central Bank of Nigeria on Monday warned Nigerians against patronising what it called ‘wonder banks’, stating that their activities were not regulated by it. 
 
The Head, Consumer Protection Department, CBN, Hajiya Kadija Kassim, stated this during a mentoring programme for students of the Government Secondary School, Suleja, Niger State. 
 
The mentoring programme, which was held simultaneously in over 200 schools, was part of activities to mark the World Savings Day. 
 
 
 
The apex bank’s warning is coming at a time when the huge unemployment situation in the country is making a lot of people to take interest in an online investment scheme tagged: ‘MMM Federal Republic of Nigeria (nigeria.)’. 
 
The platform has embarked on an aggressive online media campaign to lure the investing public to participate in what it called “mutual aid financial network,” with a monthly investment return of 30 per cent. 
 
Kassim, while responding to a question asked by one of the students, described the scheme as fraudulent since it was not supported by any business model. 
 
She said, “We have heard about the activities of MMM, but I want to warn you against it because they are wonder banks that are not regulated. 
 
“Desist from their activities because they are fraudulent.” 
 
She said the theme of this year’s World Savings Day, ‘Don’t save what is left after spending, but spend what is left after saving’, would assist in creating the needed awareness on the need to save. 
 
She added, “The World Savings Day is a tradition created with the objective of stressing the importance of savings for modern economies and individuals alike. 
 
“The primary objective is to increase awareness on financial literacy among various segments of the general public to sensitise them to the importance of saving, earning a livelihood, inculcating a savings habit, and generating employment and entrepreneurship for personal and national development.” 
 
 
 
Every mmm participant goes through the following stages 
1. U think its a scam 
2. U register because of ur friend 
3. U are afraid ur money is going to disappear 
4. Ectasy !!! u got help 
5. U can't shut up u tell ur family and friends 
6. You get scared again because of rumour mongers 
7. You get desperate for referral bonus 
8. You increase ur pledge. 
9. When people say mmm is a scam u tell them that u like it, that mmm should keep scamming u. 
10. You spend money like your father owns. 
BE WARNED!</div>

'MMM Is A Fraudulent Scheme' - CBN Warns Nigerians

The Central Bank of Nigeria on Monday warned Nigerians against patronising what it called ‘wonder banks’, stating that their activities were...

Recession: Sanusi backs sale of assets

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLpa5sqIjdr8synGtXVW2fYx-_9ElBKksvnjvmnDB7lrphFr7pjRa2gZUxFXku_HPoPn73dPsAvG-MiQ2P6Rma90GlYr33cLzoO1CSm8VNy2tcoY7OcW5T75Qf139AksyoQXvbRD815n5S/s2560/%25255BUNSET%25255D.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLpa5sqIjdr8synGtXVW2fYx-_9ElBKksvnjvmnDB7lrphFr7pjRa2gZUxFXku_HPoPn73dPsAvG-MiQ2P6Rma90GlYr33cLzoO1CSm8VNy2tcoY7OcW5T75Qf139AksyoQXvbRD815n5S/s640/%25255BUNSET%25255D.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;"/></a>Immediate Past Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, has thrown his weight behind the sale of government assets to enable it pull the economy out of recession. 
Sanusi, who spoke in Lagos Wednesday supported business mogul, Aliko Dangote and Senate President, Bukola Saraki, who had earlier called on President Muhammadu Buhari to sell the Nigerian Liquified Natural Gas plant (NLNG) to generate funds for critical infrastructure projects. 
The Kano Royal father said the option would enable the country finance key projects that will improve the economic status of the country, while it can buy back such assets when the economy bounces back. 
 
The former CBN boss also supported the retention of Monetary Policy Rate, (MPR) at 14 per cent, lamenting that the Naira today is undervalued at over N400 to the dollar. 
This was as global and local financial experts hailed the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN)’s decision to leave interest rates unchanged despite advice by Mrs Kemi Adeosun, the Minister of Finance, urging the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), to lower interest rate to enable government borrow locally to boost the economy. 
Speaking on the topic, “Searching for Investor Confidence,” at an annual banking report presentation by Afrinvest in Lagos, Sanusi, said reducing the rate would not lead to increase in credit but higher inflation. 
He said: “If you lower the MPR by 100 or 200 points today, it is not going to lead to rapid increase in credit; that will reverse a downtrend in output. You will, however, fuel inflation and reduce yields in fixed income market as the Federal Government is trying to attract foreign exchange. 
“I personally feel it is a positive trend. When the fiscal authority and many people said they wanted lower rates, I was concerned the CBN would succumb to pressure and the fact that CBN did not seem to me that it is beginning to reclaim its independence, which to me, is a good thing for this economy.” 
He noted that reversing its tightening stance will further fuel inflation and reduce yields at a time when the country is trying to lure foreign investors, adding that the country is in dire need of foreign exchange and portfolio investors. 
Sanusi also commended the flexible exchange rate policy of the CBN as well as its tightening stance saying, “some decisions will seem to fly in your face within the first week or two, the naira today is undervalued if you take Purchasing Power Parity (PPP), the stocks are grossly undervalued, the fixed income is offering high yields. 
Commenting on the actions of the apex bank yesterday, an Economist at Exotix Partners, a leading investment firm for frontier and illiquid markets based in the United Kingdom, Alan Cameron, commended the CBN’s decision, describing it as one of the regulator’s, “most sensible statement in months (and) one clear about the mandate and policy limitations.” 
He added that the MPC statement, “ should be confidence-building, albeit from a rather low level.” 
Also reacting, Senior Macroeconomic Specialist at Ecobank International, London, Gaime Nonyame, backed the rates retention by CBN. 
She said the CBN can’t reduce interest because of inflation and also cannot afford to increase interest rate because the country is already in recession. This she insisted would not be desirable and encouraging to investors, who are expected to bring in much needed foreign currency, Nigeria needs to get out of recession. 
Analysts at Foreign Currency Trading & Investment arm of Diamond Bank Plc., Uyi Ohenhen, lauded the CBN’s action. He said it is a positive development that triggered inflow of funds into the foreign exchange market yesterday. 
 
One of the economists that spoke with Reuters also praised the CBN for shrugging off political pressure. 
“CBN’s refusal to bow to government pressure is a notable sign of the institution’s independence,” said John Ashbourne of Capital Economics.</div>

Recession: Sanusi backs sale of assets

Immediate Past Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, has thrown his weight behind the sal...

Presidency denies secret recruitments in CBN, FIRS, others

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJiI_YIjlmXxsTcvBmlgkn8AforQh0fEEAhExy-Jj_Ok9bQuwyIyiBERAU7rsTh7GLQGvVakiRvH1sMolzL-lCbIo_VasCllgo3O6l44u8lut66A0fpOsXQF35inw41ljoMCQCkszule6g/s2560/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJiI_YIjlmXxsTcvBmlgkn8AforQh0fEEAhExy-Jj_Ok9bQuwyIyiBERAU7rsTh7GLQGvVakiRvH1sMolzL-lCbIo_VasCllgo3O6l44u8lut66A0fpOsXQF35inw41ljoMCQCkszule6g/s640/%25255BUNSET%25255D.png" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;"/></a>The Presidency yesterday denied alleged secret recruitment of children and cronies of government functionaries at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and other agencies and parastatals of government, describing such reports as “inaccurate”. 
 
This is even as it gave reasons behind the exclusion of the private sector in the current Economic Management Team (EMT) headed by the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, saying the President Muhammadu Buhari administration considers managing the economy its responsibility. 
Recent media reports had alleged that cronies of officials of the present government including President Muhammadu Buhari and his vice, are being secretly employed in government agencies described as lucrative. 
But the Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President, Mr. Laolu Akande, told State House correspondents that there was no iota of truth in the reports. According to him, the government was rather sanitising the recruitment process and the public service systems to make them more transparent. “These reports are inaccurate. What we heard is that government is working to ensure that we develop, going forward, a more transparent process. We are committed in going forward to ensure that some of these procedures are refined, fine-tuned and made to become more transparent,” he said. 
 
On the national economic management team, Akande said that it was government’s responsibility to take on the economy. 
He said, ”we have to understand that the attitude of this Presidency is to consider the management of the economy as a government responsibility. It is not something that this government believes should be done by bringing in some of the private interests into the economic team to take a decision that they will be directly involved with. So our stand is that the management of the economy is a government responsibility,” he said. 
Akande, however, added that the private sector was not totally excluded as other stakeholders such as the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) and the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), have also been engaged by the government. 
“For instance, we have started meeting on constant basis with MAN and there have been meetings with arms of the economic sector of the country. There have been meetings with the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) and some other economic interests with companies making presentations. 
“But generally, this thing is a government team and the team has been able to set out before the budget trying to figure out what the budget ought to focus on. After the budget was presented and eventually signed, there was also the publication of the strategic implementation plan, which was produced in a reader friendly format. 
“All of these are the outcomes of what EMT does and it is also in the team that you have the heap of the whole physical and monetary policy and don’t forget that the monetary policy is always the duty and responsibility of the central bank, which is an economic arm of government,” he said. 
When asked to put a timeline when Nigerians will begin to feel the impact of the economic team, the Vice President’s media aide said the present administration was committed to charting a new course for the country. 
According to him, the corruption fight is a laudable feat of the administration. “As much as we try not to say this, we know as a matter of fact that members of the past administration, most of them have come out to say they did not save for the rainy day. So we are dealing mostly with situations that have been caused even before this administration took over power. The President and his team have worked hard and planned not only to save cost, not only to tighten public expenditure but to also diversify the economy like never before.”</div>

Presidency denies secret recruitments in CBN, FIRS, others

The Presidency yesterday denied alleged secret recruitment of children and cronies of government functionaries at the Central Bank of Nigeri...

Nigerian Trade and Investment Minister Okechukwu Enelamah and CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele Discuss Dollar Supply

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibU8OzFABQA-MAFbUJwxraCNW3ALwkVFhVegOM4GlmM1xHiP1XiZtziPvmGLmx5Vwg1NNEDbb1MPhT41KyI7-IpQDNHH4pCgBiYHNAHVFzwMi-dKvMTFTzaKTA5R1BsBy9i8CqfcndZf5l/s2560/%25255BUNSET%25255D.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibU8OzFABQA-MAFbUJwxraCNW3ALwkVFhVegOM4GlmM1xHiP1XiZtziPvmGLmx5Vwg1NNEDbb1MPhT41KyI7-IpQDNHH4pCgBiYHNAHVFzwMi-dKvMTFTzaKTA5R1BsBy9i8CqfcndZf5l/s640/%25255BUNSET%25255D.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;"/></a>The Nigerian Trade and Investment Minister Okechukwu Enelamah and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele are discussing ways to ensure supplies of foreign exchange to manufacturers in the West African nation as the plunge in oil prices constricts dollar inflows. 
 
“My minister is engaging with the central bank governor and other key stakeholders to ensure that the interests of manufacturers are taken care of” in the provision of foreign exchange, director of trade at the ministry of industry, trade and investment, Omotara Awobokun, was quoted by Bloomberg to have said in an interview. 
 
 
 
“I am sure a lot of suggestions and initiatives are on the table,” she said in the commercial capital, Lagos. 
 
She declined to specify what options are being considered before the government completes its proposals. 
 
The Manufacturers’ Association of Nigeria proposed to the central bank in February that it sell dollars directly to the industry group’s members at weekly auctions, bypassing commercial lenders. 
 
The plan is an attempt to counter a shortage of foreign exchange and to save jobs, vice president of the association, Ali Madugu had 
said in an interview. 
 
Nigeria derives about two-thirds of government revenue from oil, which slumped to a 12-year-low this year. Authorities have rationed dollars and brought interbank foreign-exchange trading to a halt since February last year in a bid to prevent the naira falling. The measures have all but pegged the currency at N197-N199 per dollar. As dollars have become more scarce; the black-market exchange rate has plummeted, reaching N324 per dollar on Tuesday, according to Lagos-based Everdon Bureau de Change. 
 
Companies have written to the ministry, expressing the difficulty they face obtaining dollars, Awobokun said. 
 
“Manufacturing is the alternative to the dwindling oil sector” and to be able to support efforts to diversify the economy, producers need foreign exchange to import equipment, she said. 
 
Nigeria’s industrial sector contracted in the fourth quarter of last year.</div>

Nigerian Trade and Investment Minister Okechukwu Enelamah and CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele Discuss Dollar Supply

The Nigerian Trade and Investment Minister Okechukwu Enelamah and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele are discussing way...

Naira crashes to 300 against dollar

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzI0JjIxPXUGLXinOoJqIxSCotXtEHnLlAEI-Hen4hIicQLA3rhTVaHfSjgjSl_CS_LMUvv-eAxV7clcU6Tmf2MzcfuLwWlvVB1jjucjbufbeqQBjOyJISXX-I4vLrxx2GrZzMTvqvYr6C/s2560/%25255BUNSET%25255D.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzI0JjIxPXUGLXinOoJqIxSCotXtEHnLlAEI-Hen4hIicQLA3rhTVaHfSjgjSl_CS_LMUvv-eAxV7clcU6Tmf2MzcfuLwWlvVB1jjucjbufbeqQBjOyJISXX-I4vLrxx2GrZzMTvqvYr6C/s640/%25255BUNSET%25255D.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;"/></a>Monday’s stoppage of foreign exchange sales to Bureau De Change operators by the Central Bank of Nigeria failed to lift the naira on Tuesday as the currency exchanged for 300 against the United States dollar in Kano, 290 in Lagos and 292 in Abuja. 
 
Financial experts said the naira would decline further, while private sector operators described the move as a welcome development. 
 
The ban was announced on Monday, when naira trading at 285 against the dollar at the parallel market from 278 on Friday. 
 
 
 
The Acting President, Association of Bureau De Change Operators, Alhaji Aminu Gwadabe, told one of correspondents in a telephone interview that the currency traded against the greenback at 300, 290 and 292 in Kano, Lagos and Abuja a day after the CBN announcement. 
 
“There is cut of (dollar) supply to the market. The BDC sub-sector has been murdered. We are not coping. The naira is going to head northwards. There is no solution in sight,” Gwadabe lamented. 
 
The Head of Investment Research, Afrinvest West Africa Limited, Mr. Ayodeji Ebo, said the stoppage of forex sale to the BDCs meant that the CBN wanted everybody to apply to the banks for dollars. 
 
He stated, “But we feel the pressure now will move from the BDCs to the parallel market. We will see significant spike in the value of the naira at the parallel market because the little supply to the BDCs have also helped to cushion the demand at the parallel market. 
 
“It will further compound or increase the spread between the parallel market and the interbank market. So, it will also increase round-tripping and unethical practices within the financial system.” 
 
On the lifting of the ban on cash deposits into domiciliary accounts, Ebo said, “I am still sceptical about how this will work except they are also assuring us that if you deposit it, you can consummate business with it.” 
 
A professor of financial economics at the University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Leo Ukpong, said, “I don’t think the stoppage of dollar sale to the BDCs will solve the problem. The currency will depreciate some more. 
 
“This move will make the naira to weaken more as demand for dollar will skyrocket because of the short supply.” 
 
Members of the organised private sector, however, applauded the CBN for the stopping the sale of dollars to the BDCs and lifting the ban on cash deposits into domiciliary accounts. 
 
The President, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, Dr. Frank Jacobs, said industrialists had earlier kicked against the funding of the BDCs by the central bank, adding that with the development, the forex could be channelled towards funding the real sector in terms of importation of raw materials. 
 
On the removal of the restriction of cash deposits into domiciliary accounts, Jacobs said manufacturers were still waiting for more clarification as to how the money deposited could be utilised by the customers. 
 
The Director-General, the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture, Mr. Emmanuel Cobham, said the forex sale ban was a welcome development. 
 
According to him, although the BDCs are necessary in the economy, they are licensed entities and should, therefore, source for their own funds. 
 
Also speaking on the matter, the Director-General, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mr. Muda Yusuf, lauded the forex policy review, noting that it had addressed the concerns of economic operators. 
 
According to him, it is a source of worry that the CBN continues to maintain its official exchange rate at N199 to the dollar at a time of dwindling forex inflow. 
 
“The pressure on the official window will persist. The risk of round-tripping and distortions in the foreign exchange market will consequently remain high,” he said.</div>

Naira crashes to 300 against dollar

Monday’s stoppage of foreign exchange sales to Bureau De Change operators by the Central Bank of Nigeria failed to lift the naira on Tuesday...

Dollar scarcity: Parents of overseas students weep in banks

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEios8dKSqqVdwhD4RHn_iX4irkJ91vhtrXKdEsiW4awxK8jnQ0Gvw-5TY6URKEQUXvRtkZVCGgcsSL9u0QER5V45-19WjFXVIaMDvivoqsYENtnLcx7XkmcRb2oAR2iHiIrP-lD5aLERGRq/s2560/%25255BUNSET%25255D.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEios8dKSqqVdwhD4RHn_iX4irkJ91vhtrXKdEsiW4awxK8jnQ0Gvw-5TY6URKEQUXvRtkZVCGgcsSL9u0QER5V45-19WjFXVIaMDvivoqsYENtnLcx7XkmcRb2oAR2iHiIrP-lD5aLERGRq/s640/%25255BUNSET%25255D.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;"/></a>CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele 
 
 
 
 
Fisayo Falodi, Success Nwogu, Jesusegun Alagbe, Demola Olonilua and Armstrong Bakam 
 
As dollar scarcity worsens in Nigeria, parents who have children schooling abroad have taken their frustrations to banks, with some of them weeping openly, as Saturday PUNCH observed. 
 
Investigations by our correspondents revealed that the frustrations by some parents who cannot access forex to send to their children abroad have brought out their emotional sides, while affected students have been crying out for help in foreign lands. 
 
When one of our correspondents visited some banks along Muritala Muhammed Way, Unity Road and Taiwo Road in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, on Wednesday and Thursday, some bank customers, who were there to buy dollars, expressed disappointments at the scarcity of the currency. 
 
One of the customers, Alhaja Salamatu Ajibola, who practically broke down in tears, lamented that the education of her two children schooling in the United States had been threatened by the development. 
 
She added that her children had been going without food due to her inability to send them money for their upkeep. 
 
Ajibola said that it had been difficult for her to send her children dollars for their personal and educational needs. She said she had visited one of the banks several times, hoping to send dollars to her children, only to be told that the currency was insufficient to meet customers’ demands. 
 
Another tearful parent, who spoke to Saturday PUNCH on the condition of anonymity, in a first generation bank in Bauchi State, said it had become impossible for him to meet the financial needs of his children schooling abroad. 
 
She said she was seeking other ways of sending money abroad due to the difficulty she was facing in getting dollars to send to her children. 
 
“Our children abroad are crying and we parents are also crying,” she said. 
 
“They are confused and we are also confused because we can’t send money to them and they can’t receive. They are in misery, hunger and depression. 
 
“They can’t even feed well because they can’t get money for their upkeep.” 
 
She, therefore, called on the government to “create an escape route so that children will not continue to suffer.” 
 
Also, Mr. Jimoh Abdulganiyu, whose son is studying medicine in Ukraine, said he could not get dollars, even at the black market, to send to him. 
 
Abdulganiyu said his son was given a warning letter by the school authorities over delay in payment of accommodation fees and he risks being asked to vacate the dormitory soon. 
 
He expressed fears of the possibility of buying fake dollars because of the pressure of getting dollars, which has been pushing parents to the parallel market. 
 
He said, “Sometimes, I would get to the bank by 6.40am, before the official opening hour, to stand a good chance of getting dollars through the Western Union or Money Gram. 
 
“And this does not mean that I would automatically get the dollars, I still have to lobby before I could get it. Even at that, there is a limit to the amount I can get.” 
 
One of our correspondents, who visited two commercial banks in the Sabo, Yaba area of Lagos on Thursday, observed that there were no dollars for sale. Sabo is a black market hub for forex activities in Lagos. 
 
There, a 65-year-old man, Mr. Obafemi Solomon, who also expressed frustration with the situation, struggled to fight back tears as he narrated his ordeal. 
 
Solomon said he was indebted to some of his friends in the United States, where his daughter was schooling. 
 
Solomon said his friends had had to bail him out of the financial problem because he felt it was unwise to exchange naira for dollars at the present exchange rate. 
 
He said, “What I am doing right now is to beg my friends who are in the US to help me pay for my daughter’s tuition. It does not make any sense to change naira for dollars and send to her. There is even no dollar to buy.” 
 
A pensioner, Mr. Olu Ajibade, who resides in Ekiti, also shared his plight, saying things had not been this tough in the past four years that his son had been in Middlesex University, London. 
 
Calling for the liberalisation of the foreign exchange market, Ajibade said, “Now we rely on the black market and the forex rate is very high. If you don’t go to them then you are left to face the bank and they have so many rules you have to oblige to before you can get money from them. 
 
“You will have to fill so many forms, get a letter from the school and go through so many rigorous processes. With that, it is not even guaranteed that you would get money from them. Honestly, it is not easy at all. Unfortunately, there are no other alternatives. The black market that could have been an alternative is not properly funded. The truth is that if you want to buy £3,000 in the black market, they tell you that they don’t have more than £800. For instance, we needed to pay school fees of about £10,000 but all we could do was pay half because of the scarcity of foreign currency.” 
 
A Nigerian student studying in a US university, Adebayo Kabiru, told Saturday PUNCH that he would have gone bankrupt if not for the menial jobs he was doing. 
 
In a telephone interview with one of our correspondents, Kabiru said, “My parents have not been able to send me money since January. At a point, I got frustrated, but I had to do something. So now, I do some menial jobs to pay for my upkeep.” 
 
Also, a student studying in Russia, who spoke with Saturday PUNCH, said she was about to be deported because her visa had expired and her parents could not send her money to renew it. 
 
She said, “My father has been trying to send me money for the past two weeks for me to settle my visa problem and other things, but has been unable to do so. I am about to be deported and when that happens, I will lose the opportunity of rounding off my last session here in Russia.” 
 
Simon Uwem, a student studying for his Master’s degree at a university in Indiana, US, revealed that Nigerian students abroad have been having rough times. 
 
He said, “I have been able to survive because I have a research position in school and I get paid very well. I was hired by the school for the job. The truth is that if you are intelligent, you will survive. 
 
“But it has been so tough for some students here. Asking your parents for $1,000 means they need to look for N400,000. Some students don’t even get to hear from their parents any longer. They have resorted to doing menial jobs or marrying Akata (American citizens) here. 
 
“A professor recently spoke to me about getting more foreign students from Africa and I told him that finance had become a challenge even if such students get scholarships. A textbook here costs up to $200. It has been quite tough.” 
 
 
 
Source; PUNCH</div>

Dollar scarcity: Parents of overseas students weep in banks

CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele Fisayo Falodi, Success Nwogu, Jesusegun Alagbe, Demola Olonilua and Armstrong Bakam As dollar scarcity ...

BVN exposes 23,306 ‘ghost workers’ on Fed Govt payroll

<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLOu5QTZC5BXZpaFKu1_fThaV4i3zqPW1w0OWvkVSwMQPXh0OCsPVzLX_sjR6C0K3MqP6-R0Rb5H36thXr9h3DZZitowuuyVSC0uXttF4rHvJVPrij3vBET9wpPHWkgKlO4swbGu9vd0dg/s2560/%25255BUNSET%25255D.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLOu5QTZC5BXZpaFKu1_fThaV4i3zqPW1w0OWvkVSwMQPXh0OCsPVzLX_sjR6C0K3MqP6-R0Rb5H36thXr9h3DZZitowuuyVSC0uXttF4rHvJVPrij3vBET9wpPHWkgKlO4swbGu9vd0dg/s640/%25255BUNSET%25255D.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;"/></a>No fewer than 23,306 names are to be deleted from the Federal Government’s payroll. A team probing multiple salary payments recommended 23,306 civil servants and some banks for thorough investigations. 
 
The government has started deleting the indicted civil servants from its payroll, The Nation learnt yesterday. 
It was also learnt that some of those affected have tendered their resignation letters to pre-empt dismissal from service and prosecution. 
 
According to a source, of 312,306 civil servants, whose bank accounts have so far been checked through the Bank Verification Number (BVN) platform, 23,306 have issues with their accounts. 
 
The source claimed that with the adoption of the BVN for salary payment, the Federal Ministry of Finance has so far checked the details of about 312,000 civil servants— a development said to have led to the discovery of many irregularities in salary payment. 
“Out of the accounts of about 312,000 civil servants processed so far, the ministry was said to have uncovered irregularities in the account of about 23,306 of them, who were suspected to have been collecting double salary. 
 
“These indicted individuals are in two categories. In the first group, we found out that the names of some civil servants, whose salaries are being processed, are different from the names on the accounts where their salaries are paid. What this means is either those in this category are drawing salary from two sources (which could be different agencies), or they are ghost workers,” the source said. 
The source added that the probe also showed that salaries were being paid to some inactive accounts, thus raising the suspicion that government was merely making payment to ghost workers. 
But it was gathered yesterday that the Federal Government has placed some banks under watch for their roles in the salary scam. 
 
The probe panel was said to have discovered that some of the inactive accounts were domiciled in a particular branch of a bank. 
It was learnt that over 300 accounts of some civil servants were opened on the same day and all of them have become dormant. 
 
The Special Adviser to the Minister of Finance on Media Matters, Mr. Festus Akanbi, said last night, “The public will be appropriately briefed when the full report is ready.” 
The adoption of the BVN became inevitable due to the failure of the Integrated Payroll Personnel Information System (IPPIS) to effectively deal with the issue of ghost workers in the federal civil service. 
 
A source in the ministry explained that the strategy of using BVN rather than requiring the physical presence of each worker “significantly simplified and accelerated the progress of the project and at a lower cost than previously incurred”.</div>

BVN exposes 23,306 ‘ghost workers’ on Fed Govt payroll

No fewer than 23,306 names are to be deleted from the Federal Government’s payroll. A team probing multiple salary payments recommended 23,3...

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