Old Naira Notes: Malami, Emefiele to Land in Big Trouble within 24 Hours over Failure to Obey S’Court

• The controversy over using and circulating the old N200, N500 and N1000 naira notes has reached a fever pitch
• Despite the ruling of the Supreme Court declaring the old notes legal until December 31, the Central Bank of Nigeria is yet to comply
• However, the trio of Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara state governments has vowed to file contempt litigation against the CBN governor

Amid the controversies surrounding the coexistence of the old and new naira notes despite the Supreme Court ruling in favour of the old notes, the Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, has been issued a 24-hour deadline to comply with the ruling of the apex court.

Similarly, the Central Bank of Nigeria's Governor, Godwin Emefiele, was also issued the same deadline to comply with the Supreme Court order.

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As reported by the Punch newspaper, this deadline was rolled out by the state governors who filed the suit against the federal government.

These governors include Governor Nasir El-Rufai (Kaduna), Governor Yahaya Bello (Kogi state) and Governor Bello Matawalle (Zamfara).

Legit.ng gathered that the trio have resorted to filing a suit of contempt against Malami and Emefiele if they fail to comply by Tuesday, March 14, and officially allow the use of the old N1,000, N500 and N200 notes, as well as ensure their circulation.

Reports also confirmed that the federal government had been issued the original copy of the Supreme Court order as part of steps to ensure compliance with the apex court ruling.

Giving further details of the development, a senior advocate, Abdulhakeem Mustapha, said:

“The Attorney-General of the Federation has been served now and we will take it up from there; if there is no compliance now, we will commence committal proceedings against the attorney-general and the CBN governor.”

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But giving an update on the move to enforce compliance with the order of the apex court on Sunday, the Zamfara State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Junaidu Aminu, revealed that since the Federal Government had refused to implement the judgment, the plaintiffs in the suit would approach the court again to ensure compliance with the court’s order.

"Emefiele Told Me Old Naira Notes Now Legal Tender": Soludo Reveals Confidential Details

Meanwhile, Governor Charles Soludo has disclosed that the CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, has confirmed that the old N200, N500 and N1000 notes are now legal tender.

Soludo said that Emefiele confirmed the status of the notes to him via a telephone call after the meeting of the bankers' committee on Sunday.

The governor then urged the state's people to conduct their business with the old notes and report any bank that failed to comply while promising to deal with dissenting banks.

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Soludo Tells Anambra Residents to Accept Old Naira Notes, Report Banks Rejecting Them

Similarly, Governor Soludo has called on residents to use old naira notes for business transactions.

Soludo also asked residents to report commercial banks refusing to accept the old naira notes for deposit.

He added that he had received confirmation from CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele on the new directive to accept old notes.

Source: Legit.ng