Nigeria’s apex court, the Supreme Court has fixed March 3, 2023 to deliver judgment in the suit challenging the federal government powers on the implementation of the new naira policy.
SaharaReporters reported that the nation’s apex Court had on February 8 restrained the Federal Government from implementing the February 10 deadline for swapping the old naira notes with new ones.
However, despite the ex parte order the Central Bank of Nigeria, which is the apex bank and the bankers’ bank declined to shift the deadline, saying the CBN was not a party to the suit challenging its decision.
It had been reported that the Zamfara, Kogi and Kaduna state governments dragged the Attorney-General of the Federation before the apex court on February 3.
Upon an ex parte motion, the court restrained the federal government from ending the old banknotes swap on February 10.
Later, other states – Lagos, Ondo, Ekiti, Kano, Sokoto, Ogun and Cross River filed a motion to be joined in the suit as co-plaintiffs.
While taking arguments on Wednesday, counsel for the Federal Government, Kanu Agabi, said the Supreme Court held that all reliefs are rooted in section 20 of the CBN Act, PUNCH reports.
He argued that the apex court has no jurisdiction to hear the suit as the action cannot commence with an Originating Summons.
He also contended that the plaintiffs did not deem it fit to join the CBN as a respondent in the court despite making reference to the apex bank 32 times in their originating summons and despite the fact that seven of the reliefs sought relate to the CBN.
He asserted that Nigerians were already turning down the old notes way the President’s directive.
Agabi also asserted that by asking Nigerians to deposit their old naira at the CBN designated centres, the president was abiding by the court order and that Buhari is empowered under the constitution to veto any legislation.
