Nigerian Supreme Court has ruled that the old N200, N500, N1,000 notes remain valid and should be in circulation till December 31, 2023.
In a ruling delivered today March 3, the apex court also nullified the Federal Government’s naira redesign policy, declaring it as an affront to the 1999 Constitution.
Justice Emmanuel Agim who read the lead judgement, held that the preliminary objections by the defendants (the Attorney General of the Federation, Bayelsa and Edo states) are dismissed as the court has the jurisdiction to entertain the suit.
The court held that the dispute is between the states and the government of the Federation and within the original jurisdiction of the court
It further held that the three months timeline was also not in tune with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Act and as such unconstitutional.
Citing Section 23(2)1 of the constitution, the court held that the dispute between the federation and states, must involve law or facts. The apex court further held that President Buhari in his broadcast, admitted that the policy is flawed with a lot of challenges.
The court also held that the policy has led to some people engaging in trade by barter in this modern age, in a bid to survive. The court added that the President’s disobedience of the February 8 order, is a sign of dictatorship.