The Federal Government of Nigeria has been given 14 days ultimatum to ban online banking outfits in the country.
Human Rights and pro-democracy groups which made the call in a statement they issued in Abuja, the Federal Capital accused the online banking outfits of aiding and abetting financial crime in the country.
The Human Rights, Liberty Access and Peace Defenders’Foundation (HURIDE) and Campaign for Democracy (CD) in South East accused the online bankers of not fully complying with the operational guidelines establishing them.
In the statement signed by the Executive Director, HURIDE and Chairman of CD in the South East, Dede Uzor A Uzor, the groups said the internet bankers short change their customers by failing to send money to the recipient at the other end and they would not return it to the sender when it does not go among other infractions.
They said it takes weeks before they could refund such money and in some cases they don’t refund them because some frustrated customers don’t have the patients to go the whole log in recovering their money.
The groups said the nature of online banking gives room for fraud especially in our environment where people are still predominantly illiterates particularly in area of Information Communication Technology (ICT).
They lamented that online banking is a license for some privileged few who were granted license to commit fraud, saying that regular banks with all the regulations still defraud customers, what would happen to online bankers that are prone to abuse financial recklessness and obnoxious dispositions
“They should do away with online banking. It does not add any value to our economy. The earlier they do it, the better” Dede Uzor Decried
