The Nigerian House of Representatives summoned the CEOs of commercial banks to investigate allegations of illegal and unexplained deductions, such as maintenance and transfer charges, from customer accounts, giving the banks a four-day deadline to submit supporting documents.
The House of Representatives has summoned the chief executive officers of Nigerian commercial banks to appear before an investigative panel. The ad-hoc committee is probing alleged illegal and unexplained deductions from customers’ bank accounts, which include various charges like SMS, maintenance, and transfer fees. Committee Chairman, Rep. Kelechi Nwogu, stated, “Commercial banks are perpetrating illegality by deducting inexplicable charges from civil servants, public servants and other customers’ bank accounts without remittances.”
The committee firmly rejected the use of proxies, insisting that bank CEOs must appear in person to account for the deductions. The banks were issued a four-day ultimatum to submit all required documents for the investigation. Nwogu emphasized the panel’s mission, saying, “Our mandate is clear. All deductions or charges must be deducted rightly, fined rightly, and used rightly.” The probe is set to work closely with the EFCC and other relevant offices.