Been KYC’d yet?
Afew months ago my bankers and cellphone networks had a collective bout of dementia and decided that they did not know their clients. I have been with my bank right from the time the Zambians took David Livingstone to discover Victoria Falls – which is quite a long time ago – and I was taken aback that both my bankers and network service provider suddenly didn’t know who I was.
Like a midget at a urinal, everyone had to stay on their toes and ensure the process is done before the deadline, otherwise the cellphone companies would terminate their service. This would mean you cannot call anyone using the same number anymore and you cannot be reached on that number. Enough to coerce people into doing the needful! Or so they thought!
Sorry but we are the 11th hour generation. God created the 11th hour specifically for us in this country and most of us waited for the hallowed 11th hour to arrive and trooped off to the registration centres. When we got there, we were given a form to fill and take to the police station. Now, police stations are usually busier than a bee in a flower farm. And they cannot be bothered with your 11th hour issues when they have to restrain citizens from clawing each other over disputed cellphones and cheating spouses feuding with small houses over the size of the latter’s monthly stipend.
So after the traditional long wait, you then have to go back to the registration point where the queues were long with more twists than a Railpark-braided head. So we had to summon all our patience armoury until we got KYC’d, which looks like it is an achievement at the level of discovering the largest diamond. However, despite the threat of termination, just over 50% bothered. The rest decided to stay away and not partake in the whole thing. These are people that are struggling to pay off their debts and KYC gave them an opportunity to fade away and lose contact with their creditors. An extension has been announced but my pessimistic bones say this will only push the response to around 60% registration. The effort to get everyone KYCing will be as challenging as teaching a fish to walk. It seems KYC has inadvertently given bad debtors a lifeline and they will milk it to the hilt. The Chema Chema programme is taxiing on the runaway and is about to take flight and many small businesses are going to get loans for their businesses. This is government’s attempt
The Chema Chema programme is taxiing on the runaway and is about to take flight and many small businesses are going to get loans for their businesses
to ensure small businesses get access to funding. This is government’s attempt to support local businesses. This is government’s attempt to ensure small businesses have their share of fighting deputy sheriffs. After a while, the custodians of this will pretend they don’t know the people they loaned money to and ask them to do a KYC. You can bet your miserable little life on it!
(For comments, feedback and insults email inkspills1969@gmail.com)
*Thulaganyo Jankey is a Rapporteur and training consultant who runs his own training consultancy that provides training in BQA- accredited courses. His other services include registering consultancies with BQA and developing training courses. Contact him on 74447920 or email