Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) has opposed the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) recent directive to banks, which mandates a 0.5 percent cybersecurity levy on a wide range of electronic transactions.
TUC justified its stance on the challenging economic climate, where Nigerians already faced a steep cost of living due to the devaluation of the naira and increases in petrol prices and electricity tariffs.
In a statement issued yesterday in Abuja, TUC president, Comrade Festus Osifo expressed deep concern over the government’s policies since the current administration took office, which he said have consistently inflicted pain and suffering on the populace. The union viewed the levy as a deliberate attempt to drain Nigerians of their earnings.
Osifo said the primary concern of Nigerian workers at the moment bothers on the conclusion of discussions around the new minimum wage, rather than the government implementing policy that would further diminish the disposable income of the masses.
The unionist argued that Nigerians have already been immersed in the existing financial burdens, including stamp duty, transfer fees, VAT on transfer fees, and various account maintenance charges imposed by both the government and banks.
The labour centre also directed the criticism at the National Assembly, which the TUC believed should act as a defender of the citizens’ rights but instead appears to be colluding with the executive branch to exploit the people.
The TUC further argued that such a law should not be passed in a legislative house that truly represents the interests of the people.
He queried, “Financial analysts have done a preliminary estimate using the 2023 online transfer volume in Nigeria that fell within these categories and put the value at over N2 trillion; what kind of cybercrime are we fighting with this humongous amount of money? This ugly development will further encourage people to hoard cash at home, reduce financial inclusion, increase poverty and exacerbate misery index.
“This is indeed a conspiracy of the oppressors against the masses and citizens of this country and it must be resisted by all well-meaning Nigerians.”
“We call on the federal government to give a marching order to the Central Bank of Nigeria to immediately withdraw the circular and cancel the plan levy forthwith; failure of which we will be left with no option than to mobilize all our members, stakeholders and indeed the entire masses to embark on immediate protest that would culminate into total shutdown of the Nigerian economy as this is one exploitation too many”, Osifo added.
