THISDAYonline

For France-based Peter Anyasi, a respectable Nigerian journalist before he left for France some years back, doing business with the First Bank Plc Western Union Money Transfer through the correspondent Western Union, Paris, France, has turned out a mistake.

Weeks back, Anyasi got a phone call from Nigeria, informing him of his father's sickness back home and the urgent need for money to enable him take medical treatment.

Like a good child of his parents he is, he rushed to Western Union Paris, France, to send home through Western Union, First Bank Plc, $200 to facilitate the old man's medical treatment on August 8, through a brother in-law, a Godwin Akasie, in Lagos.

But if Anyasi thought he sent the money to meet the urgency with which its was needed, he miscalculated.

Auguements on whether the money should be collected in forex or naira between Akasie and the bank had made it impossible to get the money off First Bank untill Anyansi withdrew his money from Western Union, Paris, and re-routed through the UBA Money Gram Money Transfer.

But it was obviously too late. Days later, his father died.

Anyasi, full of grudge, in an E-mail recently sent to a friend in THISDAY, submitted: "Petty corruption in the First Bank is steadily destroying the confidence which, over the years, Nigeria at home and abroad have come to place on Western Union Money Transfer. At present, Western Union has a policy of allowing the recipients of transferred funds to be paid in US dollars if the transfer was made in that currency and if the sender so prefers. But that policy is being frustrated in Nigeria by First Bank officials, who pocket the difference between the official and black market currency exchange while they arms-twist fund recipients to accept payment in local currency.

"Owing to this shameful practice, the recipient of the $200 I transferred to Nigeria for my father's hospital bills has battled in vain in the last one week to collect this money. Not even unaccountable phone calls from Western Union Paris, could stay the itchy fingers of corrupt First Bank officials.

"Meanwhile, my ailing father faces the grim prospect of dying before even getting to the hospital while corrupt officials hold fast to the money I transferred for his treatment.

"To substantiate this story, you can reach the supposed recipient of the money, Mr. Godwin Akasie on ---phone (home) and--- (mobile).

"He alone can tell you in detail the level of corner-cutting and undue pressure First Bank officials have resorted to, including asking him to agree to receive half of this money in dollars and the rest in naira. Infact, these kind of public officials make the rest of us ashamed to say that we are Nigerians".

Akasie, on his part, said he has to come in to get the money for Anyasi's junior brother as he could not meet the demands of identification from recipients in driver's licence, employer's identity cards and international passports by the bank.

In his words:" The money was sent in my name (David) on Thursday, August 8,2002. Peter told me that he had paid the contractual commission required before the French agent sent the money to First Bank, Nigeria. I left to collect the money at First bank, Iganmu branch, Surulere, Lagos. The bank confirmed when I got there that the money had arrived. They gave me a form with Money Transfer Control Number 7465384556 to fill. I filled it, then, they told me that the money will be paid in naira and I demanded to know why. I "refused to collect it and left the bank in annoyance.

"I called Peter on phone later and told him what transpired between me and the bank. Peter then contacted one Mr. Lanre, a friend of his and an employee of the bank at its head office in Marina, Lagos, who called me on phone later to ask why I refused to collect the money. I told him and he asked me to see him later. I could not meet the appointment the day we agreed due to personal engagements.

"Two days later, Lanre phoned me and asked me to meet him at Niger House, Lagos. I met a very long queue of Nigerians, struggling to cash or collect their money there. I could not believe that in this era of modern banking, one could go to any bank and wait for minutes not to talk of hours. I spent over three hours, waiting to collect the money, I never did.

"Along with many others, we left in annoyance. Even then, they had insisted on giving the money in naira. I asked them why, the money, having been sent in dollars. Many things were working in my head as I wondered if that is how banks in the country were making the millions they declare in profits annually".

Now completely frustrated, he returned home, phoned Anyasi to let him know of his experience and his inability to collect the money all through.

A bitter Anyasi decided on returning to Western Union, Paris, to withdraw the money, while threatening to sue the correspondent Bank in France if his father dies eventually, unable to get medical attention owing to the inability to get the money out of First bank.

Anyasi eventually retrieveded the money from the Western Union, Paris, and sent 220 Euro later through the United Bank for Africa (UBA) Money Gram.

Akasie got the money eventually through a UBA branch in Lagos, the following day in dollars.

"The UBA converted the 220 Euro to dollars, working out at $204.98, which they paid to me. I converted the money at N125 to a dollar and sent it to Anyasi's people in the village on August 13, through another UBA branch.

"They called to inform me that they got the money the following day but It was already too late. I got the information later that the old man had died", an angry Akasie told City Diary early last week.

Across First bank branches in the Lagos metropolis and beyond, the story is same. People are daily all over, waiting endlessly to either receive money sent them through the Western Union Money Transfer or to retrieve money sent to relations in the states after weeks or months of not being able to collect it.

A dejected looking young man at the NIJ House, Victoria Island, Lagos branch of the bank, gave the same story of frustration recently,as he waited patiently to retrieve the money, he said, he sent to his sister in Benin City, the Edo State Capital, since March.

Fuming, he narrated his experience:" I have been here all day, waiting to retrieve the N9,000 I sent to my sister last March. They said I should go and return tomorrow, I am not going. I must collect the money today, ordinarily, I should demand interest on the money from them. My sister sent a message to me that they were sacked by flood from their house and needed some money to complete the money with her to rent a new apartment.

"I rushed to this place, gave them the money through the Western Union Money Transfer. They told me to pay them N700 as commission, I did, completed the forms and they told me to indicate the form of identification she would be required to collect the money.

"In black and white, I indicated that she should be given the money on presentation of her employer's identity card.

"As I made to leave, one of the staff told me that she could go to the nearest branch of First Bank to her immediately to collect the money if I could reach her on phone.

"I did and the tell tale story began.

"She visited the Edo Textile Mill Road, Benin branch of the bank from March -July, trying to collect the money but she was not given.

"The bank said they do not accept employer's identity card even though it was expressly stated in the form that she was paid with it", he explained, anger written all over him.

He eventually left the bank at about 4pm, almost waiting the whole day but not without collecting the money.

With the tales of frustration all over, City Diary had called at the Corporate Affairs unit of First Bank last week to ascertain what the problem actually was with the money transfer unit.

A female voice said the bank's Assistant General Manager, and Head, Corporate Affairs, Mr. Toyin Abayomi-Banjo, was away on his annual leave and that there was no other person, who could respond to my inquiries.

Asked if he could not be reached on his mobile phone, the voice answered in the negative, stating that he travelled overseas.

A similar call at the Western Union unit of the bank,however, get a response.

The official, who said other senior officials of the unit were unavailable, and gave his name simply as Femi, denied knowledge of the issues raised.

He said money sent from overseas are only paid to the recipient in forex if penalty required for such payment was met before it was sent.

Femi, who would not entertain any other question on the issue, said it was not possible to have all such recipients of money sent from overseas paid in forex.