The Presidency has declared that the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, has no reason to disobey the Supreme Court’s order on the new naira policy.
In a statement on Monday, the government said the CBN’s excuse of waiting for directives from President Muhammadu Buhari was not necessary.
This was contained in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, saying that the President never told the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami; and the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele to disobey court orders involving the government and other parties.
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Daily Report Nigeria recalls that the apex court had on March 3 ordered for the old N200, N500 and N1000 notes to remain valid till December 31, 2023.
The order followed a suit filed against the Federal Government and the apex bank by 16 states, challenging the legality or otherwise of the introduction of the policy.
The states led by Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara had sought the apex court to void the policy on the ground that it is inflicting hardships on innocent Nigerians.
The court subsequently ruled that the President’s disobedience of its February 8 order is a sign of dictatorship, adding that Buhari breached the Constitution of the Federation in the way he issued directives for the re-designing of the Naira by the CBN.
Almost two weeks after the judgment, the Central Bank and the Attorney-General have remained silent, leaving commercial banks and Nigerians in absolute confusion in the face of incomprehensible hardship.
However, the government broke its silence on Monday evening, saying that President Buhari never instructed the CBN and the AGF not to obey the order of the apex court.
The statement said, “Following the ongoing intense debate about the compliance concerning the legality of the old currency notes, the Presidency therefore wishes to state clearly that President Buhari has not done anything knowingly and deliberately to interfere with or obstruct the administration of justice.
“The President is not a micromanager and will not, therefore, stop the Attorney General and the CBN Governor from performing the details of their duties in accordance with the law. In any case. it is debatable at this time if there is proof of willful denial by the two of them on the orders of the apex court,” the Presidency stated.
It noted that the President is an absolute respecter of the rule of law and that the “negative campaign and personalised attacks against the President by the opposition and all manner of commentators is unfair and unjust”.
“As for the cashless system the CBN is determined to put in place, it is a known fact that many of the country’s citizens who bear the brunt of the sufferings, surprisingly support the policy as they believe that the action would cut corruption, fight terrorism, build an environment of honesty and reinforce the incorruptible leadership of the President.
“It is therefore wide off the mark to blame the President for the current controversy over the cash scarcity, despite the Supreme Court judgement. The CBN has no reason not to comply with court orders on the excuse of waiting for directives from the President,” the statement added
