Do not abandon cheques in Namibia

BIANCA FOELSCHER FROM KARIBIB WRITES:

Referring to the aggressiveness with which some of our local commercial banks push for the complete phasing out of cheques, it really baffles me why our Minister of Finance fully supports this rather unsought action.

In strong defence of a well-established and well-functioning payment system, I would like to point out that cheques as a matter of fact are our most basic and most comprehensive accounting tool for all emerging business people to easily adapt towards formal business bookkeeping via basic accounting procedure. Through their cheque book counterfoil, emerging business people are able to easily keep track of paid expenses and together with the obligatory monthly bank statement, the ground rules for basic bookkeeping are becoming an accountable reality, which can easily be checked and verified by the business person himself. I would call this real financial literacy, as well as basic financial empowerment. This also supports true financial inclusivity.

The cheque system is of immense real value to all our emerging and upcoming business owners, and should therefore be vividly promoted by our commercial banks, to attract new banking customers. It has the advantage of getting our informal business owners easily acquainted with fundamental accounting structures.

Proper and realistic accountancy should be the foundation of our government's intent to attract more registered taxpayers into our formal financial system, in order to broaden the Namibian tax basis efficiently and effectively. It is therefor absolutely mind boggling that our Fiscus supports aggressive initiatives to move towards a paperless banking system within a very short time.

How can there ever be a realistic financial reconciliation between the banks and their customers, as well as between the Receiver of Revenue, registered taxpayers and the banks, without any adequate and reliable bookkeeping paper-trail as proof for proper accountability? While the banks themselves are covered with endless paperwork, that customers have to sign without being able to properly read through it before signing, they (the banks) deny their customers these financial security measures with proper paper-trails as our preferred payment product.

NOT CONSULTED

Being the only really effected stakeholders, most cheque customers have never been consulted about our opinion about the abandoning of cheques. We have profoundly been excluded to defend our existing rights as cheque account holders.

I really pity uninformed and defenceless banking customers, who purely have to rely on good trust in our modern banking methods and assistance from mostly untrained banking personnel.

Without a relevant paper-trail as proof of transactions on my own account, I as customer have been denied easy access to proof of transaction processing. In any possible legal action, this is a major disadvantage for the banking customer but not for the bank.

SAFETY FEATURES

A cheque is considered my most reliable exhibit to uncover fraud effectively, because of its powerful forensic characteristics. That is why we as cheque customers regard this as our safest banking instrument, safer and more secure against any external interference in my banking account by any modern technology allowing a third party to get access to my finances through hacking, phishing, cloning and cyber crime.

Why must I, the cheque account holder, now be forced to give up my safest financial instrument and expose myself to all kinds of financial victimisation? Forcing your customer into a more unsafe financial environment is a really bad idea, and should never be expected to be adopted without severe resistance.

As an accountant, it is my professional opinion that Namibians should rather adhere to some conventional tools (like cheques) so that we can first stabilize our fragile SME business sector with banking techniques that the customer can follow-up on easily. At least for now!

DAMAGE ALREADY DONE

I doubt that our self-appointed payment governors are really aware of the chaos and fiscal damage they have already caused with their unprofessional awareness action regarding phasing out cheques by 31/12/2017.

Large businesses now do not accept cheques as a still very valid payment instrument in Namibia anymore, and customers are therefore forced into alternative payment methods, like cash, debit/credit card or EFT payments. This will again reflect negatively on the revenue situation, which desperately needs a broader taxpayers' base.

Cash provide additional opportunities for fraud within all our governments finance control systems and promotes and enhances tax dodging. It also expose customers to crime through robbery.

Elderly people who are not familiar with modern banking technologies, will be exposed to robbery at the ATM machines. ATM’s are very often empty, and therefore impose external and additional frustration on well-organised banking customers in the process of getting access to their finances.

These are but a few problems for cheque account customers. The much bigger issue is the lack of transparency and possible concealment through electronic banking, and increasing victimisation through cyber crime.