In a landmark ruling on Friday, the Supreme Court ordered that old N200, N500, and N1,000 notes will remain in circulation until December 31, 2023. The apex court also nullified the Federal Government’s naira redesign policy, declaring it an affront to the 1999 Constitution.
Justice Emmanuel Agim, who read the lead judgment, held that the court has the jurisdiction to entertain the suit, dismissing the preliminary objections by the defendants, including the Attorney General of the Federation, Bayelsa, and Edo states.
Citing Section 23(2)1 of the Constitution, the court held that the dispute between the Federal Government and states must involve law or facts. The apex court further held that President Muhammadu Buhari, in his broadcast, admitted that the policy is flawed with a lot of challenges.
According to the court, the policy has led some people to engage in trade by barter, which is not sustainable in this modern age. The court added that the President’s disobedience of the February 8 order is a sign of dictatorship.
The suit was initially instituted by Kaduna, Kogi, and Zamfara states and has been slated as the first case on the cause list for final verdict. Sixteen states of the Federation joined the suit to challenge the legality of the introduction of the policy.
The 16 states led by Kaduna, Kogi, and Zamfara are praying the apex court to void and set aside the policy on the ground that it is inflicting hardships on innocent Nigerians. They accused the President of usurping the function of the Central Bank of Nigeria in the introduction and implementation of the policy and asked that the directive issued by Buhari be voided.
Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State and his Kogi State counterpart, Yahaya Bello, were present in court to witness the judgment on Friday. The two governors were also in court at the last hearing. Also, Zamfara State Governor, Bello Matawalle, was in court on Friday.
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Joseph Omoniyi
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- Tags: CBN, Naira policy, New naira notes, Nigeria, Supreme Court
