The Supreme Court has temporarily halted the Federal Government’s planned February 10 deadline for old N200, N500, and N1,000 notes to cease being legal tender.
In a unanimous decision, the seven-man panel of justices made the ruling in an ex parte application brought by three states, Kaduna, Kogi, and Zamfara.
In the Wednesday ruling, the John Okoro-led panel granted the plaintiffs’ prayer for an interim injunction stopping the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) from phasing out the old N200, N500, and N1000 notes by February 10, 2023.
According to the plaintiffs, there has been an acute shortage of the new high-denomination naira notes since the deadline was announced.
The plaintiffs further argued that having deposited their old naira notes as directed by the apex bank, Nigerians have found it almost impossible to withdraw the new notes.
The plaintiffs blamed the shortage on the inadequacy of the timeframe for the implementation of the policy.
Granting the ex parte application, Justice Okoro said, “An order of interim injunction restraining the federal government through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) or the commercial banks from suspending or determining or ending on February 10, 2023, the timeframe with which the now older version of the 200, 500 and 1,000 denomination of the naira may no longer be legal tender pending the hearing and determination of their motion on notice for interlocutory injunction.”
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