Linus Aleke, Abuja
Nigerians have continued to lament and agonise over the harsh socio-economic conditions imposed by the unavailability of naira notes.

A trader at the building material market in Mararaba, near the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Mr Justus Okafor, said that life has become hell on earth for Nigerians.

While lamenting the low patronage occasioned by the scarcity of new naira notes, Okafor said that they now go to the market to play draft and listen to gossip, instead of staying back home to watch television.

He noted that he loses thousands of naira in profit every day as the electronic channels for money transfers are also very epileptic.

A civil servant, Mrs Josephine Ameh, told ThisNigeria that feeding her family is becoming difficult.

She noted that her husband transferred money to her to go to the market on Sunday to buy food items and she could not buy anything because the business owners were insisting on collecting cash.

She also, said that even going to work these days is difficult because of queues, which have resurfaced again in gas stations in Abuja.

A POS agent, Mr Thomas Adeniyi, said that banks have not been loading their ATMs in the past week.

He said, he now goes to the market to assist businesswomen who don’t have POS, collect money for them electronically, and collect charges to enable him to feed his family.

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“If we are getting money from the bank, why would I have to look for who to collect money for in the market before I feed my family? The regrettable thing is that the market is empty. Most of these women that sell food items had shut down their businesses because most of their goods are perishable. If the market is busy as it used to be, I usually make 4 to 5 thousand a day from charges. But not, I barely make N1500,” he further lamented.

A fruit vendor, Mallam Musa, said that the profit he is making from his business is no longer enough to sustain his business.

Is it watermelon, orange, or pineapple of one or two hundred naira that I will collect transfer or go and buy POS, he asked our correspondent.

Fruits, he said is highly perishable.

“When I peal the fruits and cut it for one and two hundred naira, anyone I cannot sell for the day will just spoil because, if it stays overnight, it will ferment and lose its taste,” he further said.

He appealed to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), to make cash available to citizens so that they can live a normal life again.