Mixed reactions have trailed the directive by the Delta State Head of Service, Dr. Mimi Oseji, on the enforcement of a dress code for civil servants.
On Monday, workers arrived at their offices in suits and corporate wear.
Last Thursday, the government issued a circular mandating stricter standards of appearance for all public servants in a bid to curb improper dressing in the public service.
The policy has, however, received backlash from civil servants and their unions.
While some civil servants saw nothing wrong in the state government's new dress code policy, others, including the Nigerian Labor Congress (NLC), said the decision was made without their consent and without considering workers' ability to buy new clothes.
Ann Ofure, a civil servant at the Chike Edozien Secretariat in Asaba, the Delta State capital, welcomes the development that she believes would curb indecent dressing in the workplace.
“But if you still turned up in native on a Monday in defiance of the new rule, you should know the consequences," She said. "It’s not a new thing for me. It’s a welcome development.
"It has been there, you know the rules. I’m surprised that people are now frowning their faces that the state government is saying we should dress well, as if you don’t know that the way you dress is the way you would be addressed.“
Mr Oyovwe, another civil servant, also praised the decision, but expressed concern about the dent it would cause in workers' pockets.
“It is something that we have always known. Dressing decently should be part and parcel of a civil servant, and anybody who is a civil servant is expected to have a code," he said.
"The military has its codes, the police have their code. Here in the civil service, we have our code."
However, the chairman of the Delta State chapter of the Nigerian Labour Congress, Goodluck Ofobruku, faulted the decision, saying labor leaders should have been consulted.
"The directive is not in line with the civil service rules, that we should put on a suit from Monday to Thursday, and that on Friday, we must put on a senator suit, without a certain type of cap, and that the women must dress a particular way. It’s not in line with the civil service rules," he expressed his frustration.
“The civil service rule says that all officers must dress in a manner that will not be deemed to be inappropriate,” he noted.
He further stated that the new directive would only add to the financial burden of workers.
"We will not take it, it is unacceptable, because you are trying to task our pockets, our already meagre salary,” Comrade Ofobruku added.
With the NLC’s position, it remains to be seen whether the new policy would last or be rescinded.
