Supreme Court Adjourns Naira Redesign Case Till March 3

 

The Supreme Court on Wednesday adjourned a case instituted by the state governments against the Federal Government challenging the implementation of the naira redesign.

The apex court adjourned the case to March 3 for judgement.

 

Earlier, the apex court consolidated the suits instituted by over 12 state governments.

At the last hearing on February 15, seven states joined the three initial states as co-plaintiffs, while Edo and Bayelsa states joined the Federal Government as co-defendants. The court, however, refused to join Abia State in the suit on the ground that it came late with its originating summons.

All efforts by Abia State Government to be joined in the suit, was turned down and was ordered to present its case at a later date.

A motion for the consolidation was also argued by the Counsel for Rivers State, Emmanuel Ukala.

 

Moving the motion on notice, Ukala premised the consolidation request on the need for the suit to be heard without any hinderance since the matter bothers on same issue.

The head of the 7-man panel, Justice John Okoro, granted the request and ordered consolidation of the ten suits into one.

Now, the plaintiffs in the suit are the Attorneys General (AGs) of Kaduna, Kogi, Zamfara, Ondo, Ekiti, Katsina, Ogun, Cross River, Sokoto, and Lagos states while the defendants are the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN), as well as the AGs of Bayelsa and Edo states.

Commencing arguments, counsel for the Federal Government, Kanu Agabi, said the Supreme Court held that all reliefs are rooted in section 20 of the CBN Act, therefore, the apex court has no jurisdiction to hear the suit as the action cannot commence with an Originating Summons.

 

He wondered why the plaintiffs did not bring the CBN governor to court as a respondent, after making reference to him 32 times in their Originating Summons.

He said the reliefs are against the CBN, yet they didn’t deem it fit to bring the CBN into the matter. He added that Nigerians had already began rejecting the old notes way before the President’s directive. He insisted that the President is not in violation of the Supreme Court order as under the constitution, the President is empowered to veto any legislation.

Counsels for Edo and Bayelsa States, also agree that the suit be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.

The counsel for Rivers urged the court to grant all the reliefs sought therein
Counsel to the AGF, also urges the court to dismiss the suit entirely.

 

Also, the Attorney General of Kano State, who is a co-plaintiff, argued that President Muhammadu Buhari sidelined members of the National Economic Council and only relied on the advice of the CBN governor in the implementation of the monetisation policy.

He added that the President decided to exercise his powers without consulting with the state governments as required by the law.

He further said that they have security report that there will be breach of law and order if nothing is done to address the issue of cash scarcity. He added that the Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje is a member of the council and he told him that the issue was never discussed at the NEC meeting.

Rather, the President relied only on one member of the council, and the CBN governor ignored the finance minister and the vice president who is the chairman of the council.

The Justice pointed out that the President can direct that the old 200 naira notes be brought back as a legal tender, then he is under the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court.

Also, the Attorney General of Jigawa stated that Section 148 of the constitution, compelled the President to seek the advice of the Jigawa State governor as a federating unit but the President did not do so in the Federal Government implementation of the redesign policy.

 

Back Story

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had extended the deadline for the swap of old N200, N500, and N1,000 from January 31 to February 10 following complaints by many Nigerians but the Supreme Court, after a suit filed by the states, held that the Federal Government, the CBN, commercial banks must not continue with the February 10 deadline pending the determination of a notice in respect of the issue on February 22.

However, President Muhammadu Buhari, in a national broadcast last Thursday, directed the apex bank to release old N200 notes into circulation to co-exist with new N200, N500 and N1,000 banknotes for 60 days — by April 10, 2023. He also said old N500 and N1,000 banknotes cease to be legal tender in Nigeria.

There has been a flurry of reactions and stark criticisms against the President’s directive including from governors of his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Governors Nasir El-Rufai (Kaduna), Abubakar Badaru (Jigawa), Rotimi Akeredolu (Ondo), Umar Ganduje (Kano); Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila; Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo; and many stalwarts of the ruling APC have openly censured and faulted the President’s directive, arguing that it has not grounds because the case is before the apex court.

Leading Senior Advocates of Nigeria like Femi Falana and Mike Ozekhome have equally faulted the President’s move, saying he cannot overrule the apex court of the land.

 Also, three State Governors- Kaduna, Zamfara and Kogi have filed another suit against Malami, and the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele over contempt of court and their alleged failure to comply with the Supreme Court order on the old naira notes.

 

Wike, Ikpeazu Will Support Tinubu In Presidential Election, Says Orji Kalu

A photo combination of Orji Kalu, Nyesom Wike, Okezie Ikpeazu, and Bola Tinubu

 The Senate Chief Whip, Orji Kalu, has said some aggrieved Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governors that make up the G5 or Integrity Group will support the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, in Saturday’s election.

Specifically, Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State and his counterpart of Enugu State, Okezie Ikpeazu, will throw their weight behind the former Lagos governor, Kalu said during a live appearance on Channels Television’s The 2023 Verdict on Monday.

The G5, which includes Wike, Ikpeazu and three other state governors, have taken a stand to abstain from supporting the PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

According to him, the general public need not be concerned about the internal wranglings in the APC over the naira swap policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

 

“Tinubu is well liked by the North and is from the South-West and is going to get a [sizable] vote in Imo, Ebonyi, Abia, Anambra and Enugu. And he’s going to have the support of Governor Wike of Rivers State, so we’re on track,” he said.

“My governor here, Okezie Ikepazu, will also support Tinubu. My senatorial district is going to give Tinubu the vote. The puncher to give the 34, 35 percent to be on the ballot.”

Promising that Tinubu would be “a man of tomorrow”, the former Abia governor added that “the G5 governors are also going to be a very big factor”.

The senator representing Abia North predicted that the South-East would vote for the APC presidential candidate because, according to him, the voters know his presidency will serve as a stepping stone a free market.

In his view, there is no cause for concern over the party’s internal crisis as he encouraged the members of the electorate to vote according to their conscious.

Describing Tinubu as a good administrator, he said the candidate could “delegate the job”.

“He’s a relief to the headquarters of the entrepreneurs where I live in Lagos,” he said. “All the presidential candidates live in Lagos; we all live there and we’re businessmen there, and Tinubu lived in the middle of the entrepreneurs of Nigeria.”

Kalu promised that his APC presidential candidate would ensure the formulation of a partnership between the private sector and the government, “which is very much not seen today”.

The 21 or 22 governors of APC are ready to support Tinubu; they brought him in at the convention. There was a ballot; Tinubu didn’t come from the back of the yard to be the presidential candidate of the APC.

copied from channels tv... credit video

 

 

 

 

1.8bn Litres Of Fuel Available For Feb, March — NNPC

 

A file photo of a nozzle pump.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited says it has put in place a “robust” plan for the supply of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, from mid-February to March.

The company’s Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Garba Deen Muhammad, in a statement on Monday, noted that the plan is part of its concerted efforts to sustain the supply of petroleum products nationwide.

“Latest updates released on Monday show that NNPC Limited has a total of 1.805 billion litres of PMS stock, representing 805.35 million litres in all the land depots nationwide and 1,000.20 million litres on marine vessels, which is equivalent to 30.09 days sufficiency,” the statement reads in part.

“An additional PMS supply of 884 Million Liters is also expected into the country by 28th February, 2023.

“For March 2023, a total of 2.3 billion litres of PMS is expected into the country, while about 2.5billion litres, which is equivalent to 42 days sufficiency, will be the closing stock for the month under review.”

NNPC assured motorists that it has adequate and sufficient volumes on all land depots as well as marine vessels.

The company added that, as the provider of energy security for the country, it would continue to sustain availability of petroleum products across the country.

Apologies And Resolutions

Earlier this month, the Group CEO, NNPCL, Mele Kyari, apologised to Nigerians for the months of pains caused by the persistent nationwide fuel scarcity, assuring the public that the “glitch” would be resolved.

 

 

Asked to specify when Nigerians will begin to see a turnaround, Kyari expressed a strong belief that the relief will be be felt “within the next one week.”

“I’m not saying that you’re going to have zero queues within the next one week,” he added. “No, I can’t guarantee that because a number of things are out of our control.”

The NNPC boss explained that market forces will determine how quickly the situation is resolved, but in his view, the country is going to see substantial and relative ease in the next one week compared to the situation at present.

 

2023 Elections: Pastor Enenche Shares Photo With Obi, Says This Is ‘The Way To Go’

 

Pastor Paul Enenche has shared a photo of himself, Bishop David Oyedepo, and Peter Obi in what appears to be an endorsement of the Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate, saying “the way to go”.

“A picture they say is worth a thousand words. This picture was randomly taken by a photographer some time ago but is speaking volumes right now, especially in this season,” the Founder and Senior Pastor of the Dunamis Gospel Centre wrote on his Facebook page Monday evening.

“What do you see? What can you hear? Are you in doubt about the way to go? The way of integrity, authenticity, honesty, sincerity, simplicity, humility, capacity, productivity; here is the way to go.”

 

The move comes in the wake of Obi’s backing by a cleric Apostle Johnson Suleman of the Omega Fire Ministries.

Obi, 61, has emerged as the first third-party candidate to challenge the dominance of Nigeria’s ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) party and main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which between them have governed since the end of military rule in 1999.

Nearly 100 million will vote on February 25 in Africa’s most populous nation to choose the successor to President Muhammadu Buhari, who steps down after two terms with Nigeria struggling with widespread insecurity and economic malaise.

A former southeast Anambra state governor, Obi has captured the interest of many young voters with a campaign offering hope for change from the patronage politics and old-guard candidates fielded by the mainstream parties.

Some polls show Obi leading, but analysts say the wealthy businessmen faces a challenge to win over enough voters in the mostly Muslim north, a key block of ballots that helps determine Nigeria’s election.

To win the presidency, candidates must garner the most ballots and also 25 percent of the votes in two-thirds of the country’s states.

Nigeria is almost equally split between the mostly Muslim north and a predominantly Christian south with three main ethnic groups, Yoruba, Hausa, and Igbo, and hundreds of local languages across the country.

Election campaigns in the past often featured candidates appealing to their ethnic base to win over voters.

 

 

 

Presidential Directive On N200 Notes Stands, CBN Insists

 The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Tuesday said President Muhammadu Buhari’s directive on the N200 notes still stands.

Buhari in his nationwide broadcast on February 16 directed the apex bank to only reissue and re-circulate the old N200 banknotes. The old N200 is expected to circulate as legal tender for 60 days up to April 10.

In a statement, the CBN dismissed some media reports that the President approved the reissuance and release of the old N500 and N1000 notes as legal tender in the country.

It described the reports as fake news, pledging to work with security agencies to unravel the perpetrators of the misleading reports.

“ The attention of the Central Bank of Nigeria has been drawn to a FAKE PRESS RELEASE Purported to have emanated from the Bank to the effect that President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the reissuance and release of old N500 and N1000 notes as legal tender in the country,” the statement read.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the Central Bank of Nigeria reiterates that in line with the directives of Mr. President, only N200 old notes are to be reissued and to circulate concurrently with the new notes. Members of the public are therefore advised to ignore this fake news.

“The Bank is working with the law enforcement agencies to investigate, apprehend and prosecute the purveyors of this fake news.   Please be guided accordingly.”