DEPOSITORS FRUSTRATED AS POOR NETWORK CRIPPLE BANK SERVICES

REPORTER: UCHE NDEKE

Commercial banks in Awka, the Anambra State capital, have continued to witness high patronage by customers who are striving to beat the deadline for the deposit of the old naira notes.

When Radio Nigeria visted some of the banks, hundreds of customers were seen inside the banking halls trying to deposit their old naira notes.

Some of them, however, expressed worry over the delay and sluggish responses from the tellers who kept on blaming network for the development.

Radio Nigeria observed that most of the customers were forced to stand up for hours as there were no adequate number of chairs that could accommodate their number.

Pregnant women, nursing mothers and aged persons were seen either seating on the floor or staircase of the banking halls as they wait for the network to improve.

Our correspondent observed that most of the customers were those operating Point Of Sale (POS) in different locations who came to deposit the old notes collected.

One of them, Mr. Okey Aruba, described the situation as very frustrating as he had spent over four hours in the banking hall without being attended to.

Another customer, Mrs. Tonia Chinenye, who said she came to upgrade her account expressed regret that the network issues had persisted for a long period as it was her fourth time of visiting bank for the same purpose.

The customers appealed to both the Central Bank of Nigeria and Commercial banks to find a lasting solution to the incessant network failures so as not to deny people willing to deposit their old notes the opportunity of doing so before the deadline.

EDITED BY CHUKWUBUIKE MADU