Micro Finance Bank Launches 250 Taxis in Enugu

The Umuchinemere Micro Finance Bank, Enugu has said it would commission 250 units of taxis to complement the state government’s effort to establish a sustainable and affordable transport service in the urban areas of the state.
Governor Sullivan Chime had earlier announced government plans to deploy about 300 taxis in the first phase of the project.
Monsignor Professor Obiora Ike, chairman of the Bank, disclosed this in Enugu he said that the fully air conditioned taxis have already arrived the state and would be presented at the official launch of the government programme next week.
He explained that the Bank decided to go into the venture as a way of helping government’s poverty alleviation programme by providing a decent means of livelihood to the youths while eliminating the menace and risks of commercial motorcycles.
“We are in agreement with the government that the very dangerous and undignifying ‘Okada’ (commercial motorcycle) culture must be brought to an end in Enugu State. We are committed to helping the government create an orderly and well organized society while providing our teeming youths with meaningful and safe means of livelihood”, he said.
Monsignor Ike said the beneficiaries of the scheme would be selected from Okada riders who will be properly screened for good character and physical conditions adding that the bank would also ensure that the beneficiaries would find it very easy and convenient to repay the loan and then own the cars permanently.
He expressed dismay at the increasing incursion of universal banks into the areas of operations of micro finance banks saying that this trend could bring about the collapse of several such institutions thus frustrating government intentions of establishing them in the first place.
He noted that micro finance banks were by their nature restricted in their operations and are principally charged with making  funds available in less complicated manner to the poor and underprivileged citizens of the country, but lamented that the bigger banks are now establishing micro finance banks in order to push the regular ones out of existence.
“We think it is unfair for the universal banks to invade our own restricted area of operation by setting up their own microfinance banks to compete with us. We know that this would run a number of the regular micro finance banks out of business and this will not be in tandem with the intentions of government in establishing them. We would have though that the bigger banks would support us rather than compete with us,” Ike stated.