Old N200, N500, and N1,000 notes are still valid until December 31, 2023, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Isa AbdulMumin, the acting director of corporate communications for the apex bank, made this disclosure in a statement on Monday. Ten days prior, the Supreme Court had ordered that old and new naira notes should coexist until the end of the year.
"Destination Money Banks operating in Nigeria have been directed to comply with the Supreme Court ruling from March 3, 2023. This is in keeping with the established tradition of obedience to court orders and sustenance of the Rule of Law Principle that characterized the government of President Muhammadu Buhari, and by extension, the operations of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), as a regulator.
As a result, the CBN convened with the Bankers' Committee and decided to keep the old N200, N500, and N1000 banknotes in circulation alongside the newly designed banknotes through December 31, 2023.
The parties involved are hereby instructed to conform as a result, the statement continued.
Old N200, N500, and N1000 notes will continue to be legal tender through December 31, 2023, according to a ruling from the highest court in the land on March 3.
This came about after 16 states of the Federation filed a lawsuit to contest the legitimacy of the introduction of the program.
The 16 states, led by Kaduna, Kogi, and Zamfara, had asked the supreme court to annul and set aside the policy because it was putting innocent Nigerians through hardship.
After that, the Supreme Court decided that President Muhammadu Buhari had violated the Constitution of the Federation by ordering the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to redesign the Naira in violation of its order from February 8, which was an indication of dictatorship.
The Presidency, CBN, and AGF remained silent following the Supreme Court's ruling on March 3, confusing many bank customers and Nigerians because the ruling of the top court ran counter to the President's order from February 16 that old N500 and N1000 notes are banned but old N200 notes are still valid until April 10.
The White House, however, broke its quiet on Monday, claiming that the President never instructed the CBN and the AGF to disregard the order of the apex court.
The Presidency stated, "The CBN has no excuse not to comply with court decisions on the justification of awaiting instructions from the President.
The Presidency added that the President is a steadfast upholder of the law and that the "personalized attacks by the opposition and various pundits against the President are unfair and unjust" are both unfair and unjustified.
Content created and supplied by: Writerbola (via Opera News )
COMMENTS