Aduragbemi Omiyale
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The suit filed by Kaduna, Kogi, and Zamfara States against the implementation of the stoppage of the old N200, N500, and N1,000 notes as legal tender in Nigeria has been adjourned by the Supreme Court till February 22, 2023.
On February 8, the apex bank granted an interim injunction sought by the state governments and fixed Wednesday, February 15, for a hearing of the matter.
But at the court this morning, the Supreme Court adjourned the matter to next Wednesday for a hearing of the consolidated suits filed by other states of the federation, which asked to be joined in the matter.
At the proceedings today, Justice John Okoro, who led the seven-member panel of the court, said the court should not lose sight of the case and its intention as it affects the suffering of Nigerians.
The other states that have asked to be part of the case include Niger, Kano, Ondo, Ekiti, Lagos, Bayelsa, and Edo States.
They want the court to stop the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) from making the old currency notes lose their validity and should be used side-by-side with the new banknotes, which are currently scarce.
The federal government, which was dragged before the court by the state governments, is challenging the jurisdiction of the apex court on the matter.
Recall that on Tuesday, the Governor of the CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele, maintained that the February 10 deadline for the validity of the old currency notes has not changed, causing many people and organisations in the country to reject the old notes.
