The Supreme Court’s hearing over naira redesign which was adjourned after a session on February 17 will resume today (Wednesday).
This publication recalls a suit was filed by Zamfara, Kogi and Kaduna state governments against the Attorney-General of the Federation on February 3.
Other states like Katsina, Lagos, Cross River, Ogun, Ekiti, Ondo and Sokoto later joined as co-plaintiffs.
This was owing to the hardship caused by the Central Bank of Nigeria’s naira redesign policy and the extended deadline of February 10, to ban the old N1000, N500 and N200 notes from being legal tenders.
Following the lawsuit by these states, the Supreme Court on February 8 ordered the CBN to suspend the implementation of the deadline of February 10, set for swapping the old note until after the court hearing on February 15.
On Wednesday, 15 February 2023, the case was adjoined the second time to February 22, 2023. The verdict of the Supreme Court still held that the old notes remain legal tender until a decision is made on adjourned hearing date.
Punch Metro reported that Buhari on Thursday, February 16, ordered the CBN to allow the continued use of the old N200 note alongside its newly redesigned counterpart until April 10, 2023, but maintained that N500 and N1000 notes are no longer legal tenders.
According to a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, the broadcast by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), in the early hours of Thursday is regarded as contempt of court.
The SAN said that the president cannot overrule the Supreme Court of Nigeria. He accused Buhari of disregarding the principle of the separation of power.
AmBusiness reported that Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai on Thursday, after Buhari’s broadcast session, shunned the president’s directive with a counter broadcast by announcing that the old N1,000, N500 and N200 notes remain legal tenders in his state pending the Supreme Court’s verdict.
Subsequently, the governor of Ogun State, Dapo Abiodun, on Friday threatened to revoke the Certificate of Occupancy of organisations that reject old naira notes.
This publication recalls that the governor of Kano State, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje had also said there will be sanctions for organisations that reject the old naira notes.
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project has also sued the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), over the ban of the old N500 and N1000 notes against the court’s order.
According to the organisation, the lawsuit against Buhari was over “the unlawful directive banning the use of old N500 and N1,000 banknotes, contrary to the interim injunction granted by the Supreme Court that the old N200, N500, and N1000 notes remain legal tender.”
Amid all these, the Federal Government of Nigeria and the CBN has refused to concede to pressure and still insists on the President’s order that only the N200 old notes remain legal tenders while the N1000 and N500 notes are no longer legal tenders.
Nigerians anticipate a favourable judgment today as the Supreme Court today resumes hearing on the old naira note deadline suit between some state governments and the Federal Government.
