About 10 states are preparing to file a contempt suit against the federal government and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) over their refusal to obey the Supreme Court judgment, ordering that both old and new N200, N500 and N1,000 notes be allowed to coexist till the end of the year.
The apex court’s judgment was in response to a suit filed against the federal government by 16 states, challenging the naira redesign policy, which was announced late last year by the central bank. The court had described the policy as an affront to Nigeria’s constitution.
The federal government and the CBN have refused to comply with the court’s judgment, prolonging the chaos that was unleashed by the policy. The policy has exposed the Nigerian public to severe cash crunch that has scuttled economic activities.
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President Muhammadu Buhari, in his February 16 national broadcast, said the policy was targeted at curbing money laundering, terrorism financing and moneybag politics. He appealed to Nigerians to be patient as the measure will lead to “the collapse of Illegal Economic Activities which would help to stem corruption and acquisition of money through illegal ways.”
However, the disadvantages of the policy have outweighed the gains. The federal government had disobeyed the Supreme Court earlier order, restraining it from enforcing the February 10 deadline set by the CBN to phase out old naira notes.
Following the March 3 judgment, the federal government and the CBN have been mum, creating anxiety as banks are restrained from implementing the judgment. The banks said they’re waiting on the CBN’s directive on the judgment, which has not come. This means that the despite the Supreme Court’s ruling, the old naira notes are not regarded as legal tender, compounding the cash crunch crisis.
On Friday, the governments of Kaduna, Kogi, Zamfara, Ondo, Ekiti, Katsina, Ogun, Cross River, Lagos and Sokoto states served the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) Abubakar Malami, the enrolled order and certified true copy (CTC) of the supreme court judgment. They were among the 16 states that initiated the suit against the CBN and the federal government.
“We have finally served the Attorney-General of the Federation the enrolled order of the Supreme Court,” the plaintiffs’ lead counsel, Abubakar Mustapha said.
“What we did on Friday was to fulfill all righteousness by serving the enrolled order on the AGF. The Federal Government has been evasive by claiming that it had not received the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the judgment, which we have obtained and made available to it. The burden is on Malami to act as the Chief Law Officer of the Federation to comply with the order.
“There is no hiding place for the government; there is no excuse again. While we are waiting for the government’s decision, the law provides us backing for Plan B.”
Mustapha said serving the enrolled order is the first step to instituting a committal proceeding against the CBN and federal government if they do not comply immediately with the judgment.
“The Attorney-General of the Federation has been served now and we will take it up from there; if there is no compliance now, we will commence committal proceedings against the attorney-general and the CBN governor,” Mustapha told ThePunch.
“When the Supreme Court talks, the constitution makes it compulsory for all government representatives and everybody to comply with its order. It’s not discretional, you have to obey, it is the last and the final and that is why we have separation of power.
“The presence of separation of power is for checks and balances; when the Supreme Court talks, it must be complied with by all persons.”
The enrolled order reads as follows: “It is ordered that this suit has merit. That the demonetization directive/policy by the President of the Federation to wit: withdrawal of the old 200, 500, and 1000 naira notes is not consistent with the provision of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) which makes provision for the Executive power of the President of the Federation and the extant laws on the subject matter.
“That the three months’ notice given for the implementation and completion of the said demonetization policy by which time the old N1,000, N500 and N200 naira notes shall cease to be legal tender does not satisfy the condition set out in Section 20(3) of the CBN Act 2007.
“That the President cannot unilaterally give a directive to embark on the demonetization policy pursuant to Section 20(3) of the CBN Act 2007 in view of Nigeria’s Fiscal Federalism, the economic interest of the Constituents of the Federation and without consultation with, and advice from the plaintiff, individually, and in their capacity as members of the National Council of States and National Economic Council and that the directive cannot be given without consultation with, and advice from the cabinet, the National Security Council and other stakeholders.
“That in issuing the directive for demonetization policy pursuant to Section 20(3) of the CBN Act, 2007 on behalf of the Federation of Nigeria, the President is under an obligation to ensure that adequate structures are put in place for the plaintiffs and Nigerian citizens prior to the implementation of the said directive.
“That the demonetization directive/policy by the President of the Federation to wit: withdrawal of the old N200, N500 and N1, 000 notes unlawfully impede the exercise of the Executive Powers of the plaintiffs’ states and other obligations to facilitate and protect the welfare of the citizens of the said states pursuant to Section 5(2) and other provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999(as amended) as well as other extant laws.
“That the directive given by the President pursuant to Section 20(3) of the CBN Act 2007 limiting the amount that can be withdrawn and the charges therein without an enabling law is unconstitutional and not binding on the plaintiffs.
“That the directive of the President of the President of the Federation exercised is illegal to the extent that it restricts, without an enabling law, the rights of the plaintiffs to freely use their money in various bank accounts.
“That the old version of N200, N500 and N1,000 notes shall continue to be legal tender alongside with the new or redesigned version until 31st December, 2023.
“That the reception of old N200, N500 and N1,000 notes and the swapping of same with new Naira notes shall continue till 31st December, 2023.
“That all the consolidated suits listed in pp. 12-13 of the judgment shall abide this judgment.”