BY DAKWAL BULMUN SUNDAY AND WAJAL BENJAMIN MATUR
“I feel like going back home because nothing is even funny right now, just yesterday I could not go to school because I was out of cash and couldn’t get cash from all the POS shops here”.
These were the words of Miss. Cinkinaan Emson, a student who resides in the Russau community.
The University of Jos resumed academic activities on the 20th of March, 2023 after the gubernatorial election which held on the 18th of March, 2023.
Though the Supreme Court has ordered that old Naira notes should remain in circulation till December 31st, 2023, students still find it difficult to access cash or make purchases.
Mercy Yammah, another student who resides in Russu said, “The lack of cash made purchase of perishable items almost impossible, this has also deterred me from buying in bulk because I don’t have enough cash and most of the traders in the market don’t accept transfer” she added.
A 300-level student of the Medical Laboratory Science department, Balmun Dafwat, said, ” I had to stay back home for a few days after school resumed because I needed to get enough cash that could sustain me for some time and I am glad I did because seeing how some of my friends have to go through so much stress before they can get as little as N2000 is heart-breaking.”
Other students expressed their gratitude to the Student Union Government (SUG) president, Mr. Troy Longmun and his team for the effort they put in to ease the impact of the cash crunch on students by providing a spot where students can get access to a decent amount of cash with the normal N100 charge, unlike the other money points where they have to pay exorbitant charges.
Photo Credit: Iyamah Emmanuel
