Protesters Obstruct The Ore-benin Highway Because To A Shortage Of Naira
On Friday, some residents of Ore in Ondo State’s Odigbo Local Government Area blocked the congested Ore-Benin expressway to express their displeasure with the lack of naira notes.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the protesters set bonfires on both sides of the expressway, preventing vehicles from using it and causing severe gridlock on the axis.
In separate interviews with NAN, a few of the protesters stated that they were upset about the shortage of naira notes, which they claimed was harming them and their families.
Additionally, they bemoaned not being able to access cash from bank Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) and being barred from banking halls.
“This is indeed a hard time for us, the naira scarcity is taking a toll on me and my family,” said Mr. Kayode Akinbola, one of the protesters, “and this protest is to demonstrate that we are not happy over this situation.”
Mr Rotimi Akinluwa, another protester said the inability to access his money through the banks’ ATMs and banking halls was so frustrating .
“I have my money in the bank and I can not get it, even the Point of Sales (PoS) operators no longer have the cash even if you want to buy, this is so frustrating,” he said.
Another protester, Mr Bummi Adewole described President Buhari’s nationwide broadcast on Thursday as “the most frustrating one as he refused to heed to the yearnings of the masses in his broadcast.”
“Buhari said they should re-circulate the N200 old notes, how many people will this satisfy, in fact there is no solution on the way at all and the problem continues,” Adewole said.
ASP Funmilayo Odunlami, the Police Public Relations Officer, Ondo State Command, in a telephone interview with NAN said that police personnel from Ore Police Area Command were “on top of the situation to arrest any breakdown of law and order.”
Moreover, Mr. Sikiru Alonge, the FRSC Unit Commander in Ore, told NAN that it was challenging to regulate traffic on the axis at the moment and urged drivers to use other routes.
