Nigeria’s top court rules old currency notes still legal tender amid cash shortage

By Ibrahim Garba Shuaibu

KANO, Nigeria (AA) - The Nigeria Supreme Court ruled Friday that N200, N500 and N1,000 naira notes will remain in circulation until the end of 2023.

The ruling came in the suit against the federal government on the naira redesign policy.

The suit was filed by 16 states to challenge the legality of the introduction of the policy.

The 16 led by the states of Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara were praying the Apex Court will void and set aside the policy on grounds that it is inflicting hardships on innocent Nigerians.

Justice John Inyang Okoro, who led a seven-judge panel, had on Feb. 22 fixed Friday for the Court to make a decision.

The governors of the states accused President Muhammadu Buhari of usurping the function of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in the introduction and implementation of the policy and asked that the directive issued by Buhari be voided.

The federal government challenged the jurisdiction of the Apex Court on grounds that the CBN was not a party and that the dispute on the policy ought to be directed to the CBN so that the suit can be referred to the Federal High Court.

Governor Nasir El-Rufai from Kaduna State, his Kogi State counterpart, Yahaya Bello and Zamfara State Governor Bello Matawalle were in court for the ruling.

"The Nigerian economy is shrinking with new naira notes. Many people lost their money because they could not be able to take their money back to banks but this judgment is a welcome development that will boost the economy with old notes in circulation," international analyst Musa Abdullahi Sufi told Anadolu.

Abdulmumin Murtala, a trader in Kano said: “This decision by the Supreme Court will surely restore our trading business back to action. I closed my business because I don't have an account with the bank and even the money is nowhere to be found."

"I am the happiest person today. The court decision will make millions of Nigerians back to life. New notes have been very scarce and this order by the court will bounce back business into action," he added.