Kaduna residents have turned to filling stations in their desperate search for cash as banks and ATMs fail to provide money to customers.

Checks indicated that people searching for cash go to petrol stations dispensing fuel, hunting for those buying fuel with cash instead of electronic transfer.

An agreement is then reached with those needing cash, who would settle the fuel price from their account through electronic transfer and then receive the cash from the fuel buyer in return.

People interviewed in one of the filling stations said the arrangement came as a relief to a lot of people who had been under severe hardship.

“I got wind of this arrangement today and went to a petrol station dispensing fuel, talked to a commercial bus driver, and he accepted to help me. We agreed that I should pay N7,000, through the station’s PoS, being the cost of his fuel, which I did,” said Adamu Saleh, a Kaduna resident.

He added, “When it was his turn to be dispensed of the fuel, I presented the N7,000 slip and collected the cash from him in return; it was a big relief to me as I had no cash on me. The major challenge is that it is not everything that can be purchased through electronic transfer of money; there are some needs that can only be satisfied using liquid cash.”

Another resident, Aisha Fika, said she had to approach three people separately at a petrol station before getting the cash she needed.

“I accosted two people who told me they had already been ‘booked’ by others, but a third person obliged,” she said.

Ms Fika said all efforts to secure cash through ATM or PoS proved abortive until she got wind of the petrol station arrangement.

Another resident, Aminu Lawan, said the challenges with this arrangement are the uncertainty of network service and the time spent waiting for the turn of “your helper to get fuel.”

Mr Lawan said, “Sometimes, the network can disappoint, or the person to help you is far behind in the petrol queue. Except you are patient, you may end up getting frustrated.”

Some said the arrangement was a big relief, helping to reduce the frustration of the naira scarcity.

Meanwhile, hospitals in Kaduna are also experiencing the adverse effects of naira scarcity.

Some hospitals stated there had been a reduction in their throughput.

A hospital staff, who did not want to be mentioned, said some patients did not have the cash to pay transport fare to the clinic.

A hospital patient, Munirat Umar, said the lack of cash and erratic network hindered the seamless electronic transfer of money, which had played a measure role in reducing the number of patients in the hospital.

Tricycle operators in the Kaduna metropolis now boldly display their bank account details on their vehicles for customers to make payments electronically.

Meanwhile, the Kaduna government said it received credible intelligence reports that some groups plan to deliberately disrupt public peace in the state by staging protests.

“Kaduna state government hereby reminds citizens that such protests remain strictly prohibited. Citizens are strongly advised to avoid all actions remotely capable of inciting a breakdown of law and order,” the government explained. 

The statement added, “The government continues to empathise with citizens who have been placed in untold distress as a result of the CBN cash swap policy. Residents must shun the baitings of mischievous groups hoping to ride on these hardships and incite violence.”

(NAN)