EFCC: Hitting the mark with war against spraying

There is an adage that if a blind man is given a gun and enough bullets, he will surely hit the target one day! This is, in a way, applicable to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) which has been blindly firing shots in too many different directions continuously missing one target which is […]

There is an adage that if a blind man is given a gun and enough bullets, he will surely hit the target one day! This is, in a way, applicable to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) which has been blindly firing shots in too many different directions continuously missing one target which is the big fish that engages in the wholesale treasury looting that has brought the nation to its knees. 

However, one of the EFCC’s numerous bullets has definitely hit the mark. Their revitalised war against “spraying” should not be dismissed as having no national consequence. It is indeed a matter of urgent national priority.

Many Nigerians feel that spraying is a harmless activity but they are wrong. Spraying which involves throwing naira notes into the air or on the floor and then dancing on top of them, is actually a crime. Section 21(3) of the CBN Bill states that “For the avoidance of doubt, spraying of, dancing or marching on the naira or any note issued by the Central Bank during social occasions or otherwise shall constitute an abuse and defacing of the naira or such note, and shall be punishable under sub-section (1) of this section.” If convicted the person faces six months imprisonment or a fine of N50,000. As with most other laws in Nigeria, those at the top routinely disregard them.

During President Buhari’s tenure, his daughter Hanan was filmed happily dancing on naira notes sprayed during her wedding. Throwing money into the air at social functions and dancing on top of it has absolutely nothing to do with giving money to “celebrants”. Also, it is completely false to justify it by claiming that spraying takes place in other parts of the world. In places like Poland, Sicily and Ukraine, wedding guests line up in orderly queues and drop money into a basket, pin it to the bride’s dress, or hand it over in an envelope. They respect money and do not throw it in the air and dance on top of it!

Spraying is a national disgrace because Nigerians quite reprehensibly dance on top of mint new notes while smelly, bacteria-infected and unhygienic notes are the normal currency used in daily business transactions! Worse still, the mint currency notes sprayed at social functions are sold at exorbitant prices, as N20,000 in brand new N200 notes is sold for N30,000!

Every weekend, bundles of mint currency notes for sale are openly displayed for sale in obscene heaps at event centres nationwide. It means, in effect, that billions of naira in mint notes which bank customers cannot obtain over the counter in their banks or from any ATM or POS operator, miraculously appear during the weekend to be sold at social functions held in public events centres. It is a lucrative business which is a national scandal considering the number of events centres nationwide.

Undoubtedly the act of spraying presents Nigerians in bad light. In the UK where their currency notes are emblazoned with the picture of their reigning monarch, the British take exception to anyone defacing images of the King or Queen, let alone dancing on them. In order to prevent arrest by British Police and not to offend their hosts, Nigerians have taken to buying and selling one-dollar notes for spraying at social occasions in the UK!

However, even though it isn’t their currency, the British find the spraying of dollars offensive. They quite correctly see Nigerian immigrants as economic refugees who abandoned their underdeveloped countries, and wonder out loud why citizens of such nations where over 75 per cent of the population live below the international poverty line have so little respect for currency notes? 

They know that rich and successful Nigerians live in Nigeria and are fully aware that the majority of excessively rich Nigerians in England are either corrupt politicians who have relocated after looting their national treasuries, or are fraudsters who take advantage of the fact that in the UK, unlike in Nigeria, the first inclination is to trust people. Mega-spraying is indeed an unnecessary display of wealth which leads to discontent.

Nigerians have been made to believe that if they cannot spray wads of cash at social functions then they are not successful in life! This prompts many youths to engage in murderous rituals or criminal activities merely in order to “live large” and throw cash about!

To serve as a deterrent against the misuse and abuse of currency the Senate has proposed legislation to amend the Central Bank Act of 2007 and implement a new minimum fine of N500,000 for those guilty of selling naira notes. 

There should be no letup in prosecution of the “anti-spraying war”, but it must be fought sensibly and not lead to widespread arrests. For example, in the USA rather than arresting a multitude of people for using drugs, they concentrate on arresting drug dealers. So, it should be with anti-spraying laws. The EFCC should routinely raid event centres and arrest all those displaying cash for sale. The mint notes should be forfeited to government which should, in turn, sell them back to banks at a discounted rate. Banks will then load the money into their ATM machines in the knowledge that they are making a profit from dispensing mint notes. Undoubtedly the EFCC would have hit the mark if they can successfully prevent spraying.