The governors of Zamfara, Kogi and Kaduna states dragged the Federal Government, specifically the governor of the CBN, Godwin Emefiele, and president Buhari to the Supreme Court. They challenged the order of the president on old Naira note deadline based on scarcity of denominations of new Naira notes.
Other state governors of the APC and PDP took sides with the plaintiffs and respondents to be joined in the suit.
On Friday, March 3, 2023, the judgment of the Supreme Court extended the validity of old N500 and N1,000 notes till December 31, 2023.
Already there are allegations and insinuations that the CBN has destroyed the old N500, N1,000 notes deposited by Nigerians in Banks across the nation.
Lest we forget, if not for the order of the Supreme Court that the CBN should release old N200 notes into circulation along with new Naira notes, the scarcity of Naira notes would have exacerbated the sufferings of Nigerians.
1. Based on the integrity of CBN regulations and assumption that all old Naira notes may have been deposited/returned to Banks on the expiration date of CBN deadline. For the purpose of this piece, let’s assume that any person, organisation that deposits old Naira notes above N10,000 may be a suspect involved in a chain of money laundering effective from Monday, March 6, 2023.
2. How would the Supreme Court handle alleged claims of the CBN that the old N500, and N1,000 notes have been incinerated/destroyed?
3. Would state governors go back to the Supreme Court to seek an order, to compel the CBN to release new denominations of Naira notes into the economy, especially considering the scarcity of new Naira notes in circulation?
4. If the situation in scenario (2) persists, Nigerians will be back to the status quo of Naira scarcity, which in the first place, triggered state governors to approach the Supreme Court to reverse the order of president Buhari and policy of the CBN on redesign of the Naira.
5. If the situation in scenario (2) persists albeit the latest judgment of the CBN making the old Naira notes of N500 and N1,000 to be legal tender till December 2023, then Nigerians will continue to suffer the implications of Naira scarcity at Banks ATMs and buying of Naira at discounted rates that reduce the actual value of Naira that they get from POS operators.
This situation may mean that Nigerians are in a long haul to getting out of the quagmire of Naira scarcity.
Also, if Naira scarcity persists, the president-elect, Bola Tinubu’s first official duty as president may be to relieve the CBN governor of his job, especially for mismanaging the policy of Naira redesign.
Definitely, the way forward, especially considering the capacity of the Nigerian Security Printing & Minting Company, NSPMC, in printing the redesigned new Naira notes, the last option would be to print new Naira notes abroad with a view to alleviate the sufferings of Nigerians.