Prof Uche Uwaleke has described the cybersecurity levy introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as ill-timed.
In a chat with Blueprint Tuesday in Abuja, Uwaleke, who is the Director of Capital Market Institute at the Nasarawa State University, Keffi, said the directive by the Apex Bank is coming at a time when the regulator is still battling with the increasing rate of currency circulating outside the banks.
He said, “It carries the downside risk of discouraging financial intermediation as well as complicating the transmission of monetary policy with more people shunning the banks due to high charges. The end result is that it makes difficult effort by the CBN to tame inflation.
“So, I think the circular should be withdrawn especially against the backdrop of assurances by the government that its plan to increase revenue would not include introducing new taxes or increasing tax rates.”
He urged the government to suspend the policy while “getting set to implement the recommendations of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms whose mandate includes streamlining multiple taxes and levies currently inhibiting the growth of businesses in Nigeria.”
