The Supreme Court on Wednesday adjourned and fixed March 3, 2023 as the date to deliver judgement in the suit filed by state governments challenging the federal government on the Naira swap policy introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The Supreme Court adjourned proceedings after listening to arguments from parties in the suit.
Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara States had approached the court to grant them an interim injunction stopping the Federal Government of Nigeria and the Central Bank of Nigeria from ending the circulation of old N200, N500 and N1000 denominations on February 10, 2023.
The plaintiffs maintained that the ten-day extension by the Federal Government for the circulation of the notes was still insufficient to address the challenges thrown up by the policy.
They are seeking a declaration that the Demonetization Policy of the Federation being currently carried out by the Central Bank of Nigeria under the directive of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is not in compliance with the extant provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), Central Bank of Nigeria Act, 2007 and actual laws on the subject.
They are also asking the court to make a declaration that the three-month notice given by the Federal Government of Nigeria through the Central Bank of Nigeria under the directive of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the expiration of which will render the old Naira notes inadmissible as legal tender, is in gross violation of the provisions of Section 20(3) of the Central Bank of Nigeria Act 2007 which specifies that Reasonable Notice must be given before such a policy.
President Muhammadu Buhari, during a national broadcast on Thursday said the old N200 note will remain legal tender and coexist with the new notes. He was silent on whether the old N500 and N1000 notes will still remain a legal tender.
Already Nigerians have generally stopped receiving the old notes for transactions.
