President Bola Tinubu has ordered the suspension of the controversial cybersecurity levy.
This was disclosed to newsmen during a press briefing on Tuesday by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris.
He explained that the President directed the central bank of Nigeria (CBN) to temporarily halt the enforcement of the 0.5 percent cybersecurity levy and to review the methods for its application.
The Minister said Tinubu ordered the suspension following deliberations by members of the Federal Executive Council (FEC), adding that the policy is under review.
“The position of the government is that that policy has been suspended. It has been put on hold. That is the position of the government for now. It is undergoing some form of review. It was reiterated in council (FEC meeting) yesterday. You know that today’s council (meeting) is a continuation of the council meeting of yesterday,” Idris said.
“So, I can tell you that the cybersecurity levy has been put on hold. It is being reviewed by the government.”
There was massive uproar and rejection from Nigerians following the CBN directive to all financial institutions, including commercial, merchant, non-interest banks, payment service banks, and mobile money operators, mandating the implementation of a 0.5% cybersecurity levy on all electronic transactions.
The CBN had mandated financial institutions to start deductions within two weeks from the date of the circular and remit the accumulated levies monthly to the National Cybersecurity Fund (NCF), which is administered by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).
