The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has ordered all workers to protest at the offices of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) across the country over the scarcity of naira notes.

The NLC directed workers to commence the protest next week.

The president of the union, Joe Ajaero, gave the directive at a press briefing in Abuja on Wednesday.

Ajaero said the order became imperative following the expiration of a one-week ultimatum given to the CBN to make naira notes available for Nigerians.

“From Friday, there will be mobilisation of all state councils through a National Executive Council meeting.

“All unions have already been directed to mobilise all their organs and their branches. By Wednesday next week, all Central Bank of Nigeria offices nationwide will be picketed.

“All central bank, from its headquarters will be shut till further notice. Workers are directed to stay at home and join in the picketing,” he said.

The NLC President further recalled that the Congress’s Central Working Committee (CWC) gave a one week ultimatum for the government to address cash crunch that was caused by the naira redesign policy.

READ ALSO: Concerns as banks run out of old, new naira notes

Ajaero said as of Wednesday morning, when the CWC met again to review the situation, it discovered that not much improvement had been made.

“The situation is still almost the same. People are still buying our currency with our currencies,” he added.

The NLC President noted that Nigerians could no longer assess the currency, adding: “The government seems to be very adamant on this.”

Ajaero further stated that no move has been made to reduce the suffering of Nigerians.

“We call on Nigerians to understand the circumstances we are operating in. People will be telling you about the political situation.

“The political situation is self inflicted and the economic situation is worse than the political situation because people cannot eat. Workers can no longer go to office and nothing is happening.

“So, we have been pushed to the wall having given one week and we thought they can address the situation which is still not addressed,” he said.

Ajaero added that the workers have decided to take their destiny in their hands, saying: “So comrades, the mobilisation commences immediately and when we talk of action from Wednesday, it’s total until further notice.”

It would be recalled that the Supreme Court, in a judgement delivered on March 3, extended the validity of the old naira notes to December 31, 2023.

The apex bank, in a statement issued on Monday, March 14 by its acting Director, Corporate Communications, Isa AbdulMumin, directed Deposit Money Banks (DMB) in the country to comply with the Supreme Court judgement.

“Accordingly, the CBN met with the Bankers’ Committee and directed that the old N200, N500, and N1,000 banknotes remain a legal tender alongside the redesigned banknotes till December 31.

“Consequently, all concerned are directed to conform accordingly,” CBN had said.

The apex bank’s directive came on the day President Muhammadu Buhari said the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, needed no clearance from him (Buhari) to obey the judgement of the Supreme Court.

President Buhari added that he didn’t order Emefiele to disobey the apex court’s order extending the validity of the old naira notes.

Scores of Nigerians have called on the apex bank to release more naira notes to commercial banks to ease hardship in the country, stressing that improvement has not been seen in terms of the availability of the denominations.

The Star