Kaduna, Kogi, and Zamfara States have instituted a suit against the Federal Government to grant them an interim injunction stopping the FG and the CBN from ending the validity of old N200, N500, and N1000 denominations on February 10, 2023.
In a motion ex-parte filed before the supreme court, the three states are praying the court to grant an interim injunction stopping the CBN from ending the time frame within which the old N200, N500, and N1000 notes will cease to be legal tender.
The Plaintiffs in the matter are the three Attorneys-General and Commissioners of Justice of the three states, while the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), is the sole Respondent.
The Plaintiffs maintained that the ten-day extension by the Federal Government is still insufficient to address the challenges bedeviling the policy.
The states 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.
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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 Bank 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.
Recall that over the weekend, the CBN Governor at a press conference held in Lagos insisted that the apex bank will not extend the deadline for swapping old naira notes with the newly redesigned ones.
In the suit filed at the apex court, the Plaintiffs have also filed a motion on notice to abridge the time within which the Respondent may file and serve his Counter-Affidavit to this Suit and an order for an accelerated hearing of this matter.
No date has been fixed for hearing of the suit
Editor: Paul Akhagbemhe
