Supreme Court strikes down naira swap policy, says old naira notes valid until Dec 31

The Supreme Court has ruled that the old N200, N500, N1,000 notes remain valid and should be in circulation until December 31, 2023.

In a decision handed down today March 3, the Supreme Court also overruled the federal government’s naira overhaul policy, declaring it an affront to the 1999 Constitution.

Judge Emmanuel Agim, who read the main judgment, held that the preliminary objections of the defendants (the Attorney General of the Federation, Bayelsa and Edo States) are dismissed because the court has jurisdiction to hear the action. .

Citing article 23(2)1 of the constitution, the court held that the dispute between the federation and the states must involve facts or laws. The Supreme Court further ruled that President Buhari on his show admitted that the policy is flawed with many challenges.

The court also found that politics led some people to engage in barter trade in this modern era, in an effort to survive. The court added that the president’s disobedience to the February 8 order is a sign of dictatorship.

Sixteen states in the Federation have filed the lawsuit to challenge the legality or otherwise of the introduction of the policy.