Gbajabiamila Kicks Against Banks’ Hidden Charges, Exploitative Marketing

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi
Gbajabiamila, has expressed concern over the way banks charge
customers indiscriminately during transactions, saying that apart
from charges known to the customers, there appeared to be other
‘hidden’ charges that the banks imposed on their customers.

Speaking when he hosted the board and management of the Standard
Chartered Bank, led by the Chief Executive Officer, Mr Lamin
Manjang, the Speaker said the House was concerned that such a
practice was making customers helpless, hence Nigerian banks should
come up with ways to address high charges on loans and other
facilities they offered.

He said: ”We have issues that come up in your industry, so this
visit is a welcome development. One of the issues at stake is the
rate at which banks charge customers. There are claims that banks
have hidden charges. This has come up a couple of times on the
floor of the House. This is something that we should look
into.”

Gbajabiamila also voiced concern over the kind of exploitative
marketing some banks’ marketers are subjected to and demanded to
know if that was the practice all over the world.

He noted that if it’s not international best practice, then why
should it obtain here.

He recalled that some years back, he came up with a bill against
corporate prostitution, but that it did not sail through.

He said: ”You have corporations in the UK and other parts of the
world. What obtains here in terms of banking, in terms of
marketing, sending people to go and knock at people’s offices and
all that does it obtain in those places?. We’re here to support
you. Whatever we need to do, we should do it to support you. We
need to know the kind of marketing that takes place. Is it digital
marketing? We also have to set realistic targets for the marketers.
We have the responsibility to protect Nigerians, and we also have
the responsibility not to kill your business. So, it’s a delicate
situation.”

Earlier, the CEO of the Standard Chartered Bank, Manjang, told
the Speaker that it was imperative to visit him to reiterate the
bank’s commitment to Nigeria, to play their role to make the
country achieve its goals.

Responding to the issue of exploitative marketing, Manjang said
it was a practice that allowed banks to market their products to
the customers, but that it had to be ethical.

“It’s not peculiar to Nigeria. But it has to be ethical. Teams
usually go round. But the ethical conduct has to be there. You need
to have marketing for people to know what you offer. If there are
any abuses or conducts that are not ideal, they should be called
out and addressed,” he added.

Also speaking, the Chairman of the House Committee on Banking
and Currency, Hon. Victor Nwokolo, said Nigerians had been battling
with the issue of high interest rates by banks and that the issue
needs to be tackled head-on.

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi
Gbajabiamila, has expressed concern over the way banks charge
customers indiscriminately during transactions, saying that apart
from charges known to the customers, there appeared to be other
‘hidden’ charges that the banks imposed on their customers.

Speaking when he hosted the board and management of the Standard
Chartered Bank, led by the Chief Executive Officer, Mr Lamin
Manjang, the Speaker said the House was concerned that such a
practice was making customers helpless, hence Nigerian banks should
come up with ways to address high charges on loans and other
facilities they offered.

He said: ”We have issues that come up in your industry, so this
visit is a welcome development. One of the issues at stake is the
rate at which banks charge customers. There are claims that banks
have hidden charges. This has come up a couple of times on the
floor of the House. This is something that we should look
into.”

Gbajabiamila also voiced concern over the kind of exploitative
marketing some banks’ marketers are subjected to and demanded to
know if that was the practice all over the world.

He noted that if it’s not international best practice, then why
should it obtain here.

He recalled that some years back, he came up with a bill against
corporate prostitution, but that it did not sail through.

He said: ”You have corporations in the UK and other parts of the
world. What obtains here in terms of banking, in terms of
marketing, sending people to go and knock at people’s offices and
all that does it obtain in those places?. We’re here to support
you. Whatever we need to do, we should do it to support you. We
need to know the kind of marketing that takes place. Is it digital
marketing? We also have to set realistic targets for the marketers.
We have the responsibility to protect Nigerians, and we also have
the responsibility not to kill your business. So, it’s a delicate
situation.”

Earlier, the CEO of the Standard Chartered Bank, Manjang, told
the Speaker that it was imperative to visit him to reiterate the
bank’s commitment to Nigeria, to play their role to make the
country achieve its goals.

Responding to the issue of exploitative marketing, Manjang said
it was a practice that allowed banks to market their products to
the customers, but that it had to be ethical.

“It’s not peculiar to Nigeria. But it has to be ethical. Teams
usually go round. But the ethical conduct has to be there. You need
to have marketing for people to know what you offer. If there are
any abuses or conducts that are not ideal, they should be called
out and addressed,” he added.

Also speaking, the Chairman of the House Committee on Banking
and Currency, Hon. Victor Nwokolo, said Nigerians had been battling
with the issue of high interest rates by banks and that the issue
needs to be tackled head-on.