By Charles Adingunpu
The Minister of Labour, Senator Chris Ngige’s early intervention saved the planned total shutdown of the entire nation’s economy by the purported strike of the Nigerian Labour Congress, NLC.
The congress which during the week threatened to embark on a nationwide Strike that would have led to the total shutdown of the economy, alerted the federal government on the biting effect of the cash crunch, jerk in electricity tariff and lingering fuel scarcity.
The labour union stated that it’s workers have become victims of these anomalies throw up on them by the government crude policies.
In the light of the above, the NLC said it has become extremely difficult for her members to survive and even go their various places of work, and consequently issued an ultimatum to the federal government in that regard.
However before the expiration of the ultimatum, the Labour Minister has reached an amicable truce with the aggrieved workers.
Senator Ngige who expressed appreciation to NLC leadership, said the union followed due process.
The Minister disclosed that when the NLC formally wrote the letter intimating him of the impending nationwide strike action, he forwarded the letter to the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele.
He said the CBN in a military dispatch distributed considerable amount of money to commercial banks nationwide, with the instructions for banking services to be provided on weekend.
Ngige said the banks adhering to CBN order, truly cushioned the effect of the ongoing cash scarcity.
The Minister who assured gradual easing off of the cash crunch, said that the CBN had earlier disclosed that it want to reduced the volume of money in circulation which was pegged at #3 billion.
The Minister further disclosed that the NLC, satisfied with the genuine efforts of the federal government, decided to recall its members deployed to picket different organisations in preparatory to the nation wide strike.
Ngige who listed the benefits of the new naira redesign policy, stated that it has put to check incessant demands of cash by kidnappers.
He urged Nigerians to be patient with the federal government in the new redesigned banknotes.
