FOR many years, Uju had dreamt of the day she would own a business. Married with three kids, the trained tailor works for a tailoring outfit in FESTAC area of Lagos. Her income, together with that of her husband, could barely sustain the family for half of a month.
“I am a mother of three. Together with my husband, we are struggling to keep our home with our meager earnings,” she said in a chat with The Nation.
For her and the family, life became a choice between two extremes. To own a business, she and and other members of her family would have to make a sacrifice: reduce the amount of money dedicated to running the home. It was the hard choice the family decided to make. The sum saved from the sacrifice was then taken to a micro-finance bank for safe-keeping.
She said: “Once we agreed to set some money aside to start a business, I decided to open an account with Suisse Micro Finance Bank, located inside the Gacoun Plaza in FESTAC Town. My plan was that I would withdraw the savings in January this year to start a business.”
However, January has come and gone but Uju’s hope of starting a business is turning into a pipe dream. For more than three weeks now, she has been going to the office of Suisse Micro Finance Bank on Road 23 on a daily basis without any sign of the operators.
She said: “In December, I went to their office after a friend told me that a crowd had gathered in front of the office. When I got there, I met more than 200 people shouting and crying. The people in the office told us that they were auditing the accounts of the bank and that they would not be able to pay anyone until they had concluded the auditing.
“Surprisingly, they suddenly locked up the office on December 16, 2016, and since then, they have refused to open their office. My family is suffering now because our plan to start a business has been destroyed and I don’t even know what to do. I have N100, 000 with them.”
Facing the same problem as Uju is a commercial bus driver who identified himself simply as Kayode. Claiming to have more than N200, 000 in his account with Sussie MFB, he lamented that the situation has affected his home adversely.
According to him, his wife has threatened to leave him because of his inability to access his deposit with the bank. “My wife no longer trusts me. Last December, while other families celebrated the Christmas, I had no money to give to my family. I did not buy anything for my children, and even to pay their school fees was a problem.”
Kayode, who burst into tears as he spoke with our correspondent, said he feared that his wife might leave him if the situation did not change in the next few weeks.
He Said: “As I am speaking with you, my wife has told me that she would move out of the house because of the suffering she has had to grapple with. I called my account officer and he could not give me any specific reason why they closed shop, except that they are carrying out the auditing of the accounts.”
Another depositor, who simply identified himself as Moses, claimed that he had the sum of N50, 000 in his account. Moses, who disclosed that he was introduced to the scheme by his father-in-law, said his deposit with the bank was low because he made it a duty to withdraw a part of his deposit every month.
Moses said: “I decided to open an account with them because it was my in-law that introduced the bank to me. However, because I suspected that something like this could happen, I made sure that I withdrew money from the account every month. I believe it is that decision that helped me now, else I would have had a huge sum with them.”
While Moses believes that he is lucky to have such a small amount in his account, Oyinyechukwu is licking the wounds of her decision to open what she termed as a ‘project account’ at Suisse.
In a chat with our correspondent, Oyinye, as she is called by friends, said she was at her wits’ end as a result of her inability to access her account with Suisse MFB.
She said she decided to open an account with the bank because she believed that it was easier to save money with them than a commercial bank. “My decision to put my little savings in the bank has turned into foolishness now because I have been proved wrong,” she said sobbing.
Looking dejected, Oyinye said she was warned against opening an account with a micro-finance bank. “When I said I wanted to open the account, one of my friends advised me not to. But I refused to listen to the advice because I believed that it was the best way I could save enough money to start the project I was planning for. But now, they are all making fun of me and I cannot even face them.”
For Oyinye, and indeed, about 3,000 depositors with Suisse, the first sign of trouble began on December 16, 2016 when the bank failed to pay depositors who had gone there to withdraw money from their accounts.
Within hours, the news quickly spread like wild fire, with many depositors trooping to the office of the bank. A large crowd of depositors were said to have gathered in front of the bank to ask for their money.
At first, the depositors were told that the delay in accessing their accounts was the result of an auditing exercise that was being done by the bank. They were then asked to exercise patience. But days soon turned into weeks and both Christmas and New Year celebrations were marked with subdued celebrations in the homes of the about 3,000 depositors.
Now, more than four weeks after the bank shut its doors to depositors, there is no sign that their tears would be wiped away any time soon. When our correspondent visited the office of Suisse MFB during the week, their doors were under lock and key. The black steel doors were sealed and welded in about five different points; signs some depositors said were indications that the bank may not resume business soon as promised.
A man in security uniform who sat at the foot of the staircase to the first floor office of the bank said the office had been shut for some weeks. But when asked about the sealing and welding of the office doors, he smiled and shook his head in a gesture of pity, saying: “I don’t know about the welding o. But I have not seen them here for some weeks now.”
Further efforts to speak with him were futile as he remained silent, refusing to say anything.
Some neighbours of Suisse MFB, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the depositors were taken unaware by the sudden decision of the management of the bank to close shop.
One of them said: “A few days before December 16, there was really no sign that the bank was going through any problem. I still saw some of their customers who came to transact business.
“As a matter of fact, I have a friend who is a customer. She did not receive any warning before the decision to shut down and turn customers back.”
Another person, who witnessed the commotion caused by the customers as they rushed to the bank to collect their money, said: “I have a shop around here. We really did not know what was happening until we saw people rushing and shouting. It was then that they told us that the bank refused to pay them their money.
“But what I observed was that the people locked up the place and we have not seen anybody since then except people who come to make enquiries.”
The Nation investigation revealed that the micro-finance bank is owned by a popular Pentecostal church. A resident of the area, who spoke on condition of anonymity, expressed surprise that the bank would go through such experience.
He said: “This bank is owned by a popular Pentecostal church. I am sure that they can take care of this mess without anybody hearing about it, and I hope that they will do the necessary thing to rescue these poor people.”
Efforts made to speak with a manager of the bank, identified simply as Pastor Chuba, were futile. After a call was made to his phone, Pastor Chuba acknowledged that it was he that was speaking. He also said the bank was merely carrying out an auditing exercise.
He, however, cut the line when he was told that the caller was a journalist. He did not pick subsequent calls that were made to the phone.
A chartered accountant, Mr Yemi Gbadamosi, who spoke with The Nation, expressed surprise over the excuse by the bank that the delay was caused by an auditing exercise. He described auditing as a review of the financial activities of a business outfit over a period of time, saying: “Auditing your accounts does not mean the business should stop.”
With no definite sign that the Suisse MFB may reopen its office any time soon, the about 3,000 depositors, whose deposits were put at about N20 million, are already seeking spiritual intervention, asking God to come to their rescue.
“I have started a prayer and fasting exercise to help me get my money. I want God to help and rescue me because my life and the future of my children depend on this money,” Kayode said.
