Are the old Naira notes coming back into circulation? Is the government going to retrieve the pains that Nigerians had to face with the policy implementation?
You see, critics have said that the Naira redesign policy was all part of the political game.
While people wonder what will become of the old notes, the Supreme Court appears to have laid their fears to rest.
On Friday, the Supreme Court revoked the naira redesign policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
It says the old ₦200, ₦500 and ₦1000 are still legal tender. Nigerians are now waiting to see if the Executive arm of government will go with the Supreme Court’s ruling.
Earlier ruling from the Supreme Court had been disregarded by the Executive Arm of government.
Indeed, the CBN policy which succeeded in throwing the nation into economic chaos in the last few weeks has been declared a nullity.
The New Legal Period
The apex court ordered that the old ₦200, ₦500 and ₦1000 notes remain in circulation till December 31, 2023.
The ruling restrained President Muhammadu Buhari and the CBN, from a full implementation of the naira redesign policy on the premise that the policy was an affront on the 1999 constitution of the country.
In its ruling on the suit filed by 16 states spearheaded by Governors Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State along with his Zamfara and Kogi States counterparts, Bello Matawalle and Yahaya Bello, the court issued a restraining order on Buhari, stopping him from withdrawing the old ₦200, ₦500 and ₦1000 banknotes in circulation.
In the judgement read by Justice Emmanuel Agim, the apex court said the President “did not follow the provisions of the constitution before implementing the policy”.
The court also noted that the President and the CBN failed to consult the National Security Council and National Economic Council before implementing the policy.
The originating suit challenging the policy was instituted against the Federal Government and the CBN by the governors who are demanding that the February 10 deadline that was set by the CBN to end the legal tender status of the old notes be extended.
States Joining The LawsuitÂ
At the first hearing before Justice John Okoro on February 15, states like Lagos, Rivers, Cross River, Ogun, Ekiti, Ondo and Sokoto, joined in as co-plaintiffs while Bayelsa and Edo States were joined as respondents on behalf of the Federal Government.
The number of states which joined as co-plaintiffs, gradually rose to sixteen as more states indicated their willingness to be a part of the case.
During the preliminary hearing, the Supreme Court, a panel of seven justices, led by Justice Okoro, adjourned the case to Wednesday February 22, before another adjournment to March 3, where the final ruling was made.
In the heat of the debate, Buhari, in a speech on February 16, gave a directive that the old ₦200 notes would be reissued to run alongside the newly designed notes, in a bid to douse tension caused by the policy.
That simultaneous sue of old and new ₦200 is supposed to end on April 10.
Nigerians will wait to see if the executive will comply.
