Barely 24 hours after the Supreme Court restated its order on the old naira notes, President Muhammadu Buhari has taken a different path.
The Supreme court had on Wednesday insisted that the old notes of N200, N500, and N1000 remained as legal tenders in the country until it makes a contrary order.
But in a national broadcast on Thursday, President Buhari said his government has extended the deadline for the demonetization of the old notes to April 10.
Within the 60 days extension, however, President Buhari said only the N200 notes will remain as legal tender, while the N500 and N1000 have now been demonetized.
The president stated that all existing old N1000 and N500 notes remain redeemable at the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, and designated points.
“To further ease the supply pressures, particularly to our citizens, I have given approval to the CBN that the old N200 bank notes be released back into circulation and that it should also be allowed to circulate as legal tender with the new N200, N500, and N1000 banknotes for 60 days from February 10, 2023, to April 10, 2023, when the old N200 notes cease to be legal tender,” the president said.
Not a few Nigerians who watched the broadcast said Buhari has caused more confusion and dashed the hopes of many with his speech.
They insist that the president has only succeeded in exacerbating the crisis in the country as the cash shortage persists, adding that his early morning speech fell short of the expectations of many Nigerians.
Reacting to the issue, Monday Ubani, former Chairman Lagos state chapter of the Nigeria Bar Association, NBA, said the president has waylaid the Supreme court by not allowing the apex court to make a final decision on the issue.
The Supreme court yesterday fixed February 22 for the hearing on a matter brought by some state governors challenging the CBN decision to demonetize the old naira notes by February 10.
Justice Okoro, the Chairman of the Supreme Court justices handling the case on Wednesday specifically directed the federal government, through its counsel Kanu Agabi, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN to ensure that the old naira note remained legal tender.
“Tell your client to let people have money. If they go to the ATM and the plaintiffs will come and withdraw the case. Make money available to the poor masses.
“You should know that a hungry man is an angry man. I say no more,” Okoro said.
But to Ubani, “the president has ignored the Supreme court by what happened this morning. My own understanding of the president’s speech is that he has overruled the supreme court.”
