Old Naira Deadline: Buhari Meets Emefiele, Malami After Supreme Court Ruling

President Muhammmadu Buhari Wednesday met with the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele and Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

The meeting held few hours after the Supreme Court restrained the Federal Government from enforcing the deadline of old naira notes.

There was no official statement after their meeting.

The CBN, which redesigned the naira, had fixed January 31 as the deadline of the old notes to be legal tender.

But the deadline was extended to February 10 after intense pressure on the government and the apex bank.

Last week, Emefiele said the apex bank was not considering extending the deadline.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) Governors had met with President Buhari over the issue and the president asked them to give him seven days to look into it.

But the governments of Kaduna, Kogi, and Zamfara states headed for the court to challenge the CBN.

In its ruling on Wednesday, a seven-member panel led by Justice John Okoro halted the Federal Government’s move.

The apex court ordered commercial banks and other financial institutions to continue transacting with the old notes pending the determination of the motion at the apex court on February 15.

Meanwhile, the supreme court ruling restraining the federal government from implementing the February 10, 2023 deadline phase out of the old N1000, N500, and N200 notes is irrelevant, non-binding and a distraction, according to a legal opinion on the matter.

“Neither the CBN nor deposit money banks were parties to the suit filed by three state governments (Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara). The state governments simply took advantage of the fact that in matters purely between state and the FG, the Supreme Court can serve as the court of first and only instance. Joining the CBN in the matter would immediately rob the supreme court of jurisdiction,” the opinion said.

“Only the CBN is empowered by Law to determine what is termed legal tender, not the Supreme Court. The Attorney General of the Federation cannot issue a binding order on the apex bank governor or board as the CBN act didn’t contemplate such and the interim order is simply an academic attempt at grandstanding,” the opinion added.