No Plan To Get Rid Of New Naira Notes — CBN
Reports that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) was thinking about taking the new N200, N500, and N1,000 notes out of circulation were not true.
Isa AbduMumimas, the acting director of corporate communications for the central bank, said in a statement on Sunday that the stories were “unfounded speculation” and that there were no plans to get rid of the three newly redesigned bank notes.
CBN denies rumours that it plans to get rid of redesigned Naira notes over time. pic.twitter.com/hjZXpP34Jq
— Central Bank of Nigeria (@cenbank) Apr 30, 2023
“The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been made aware of a fake news story circulating in the media, especially on social media, which says that the Bank is thinking about taking out of circulation the recently redesigned N1000, N500, and N200 currency banknotes,” the statement said in part.
“We want to make it clear that these rumours are not true and are just a way for some people to make the public scared.
“We want to say again that both the new and old currency notes have been in circulation at the same time that the Bank has been getting a lot of the redesigned bank notes from the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company (NSPMC) Limited.”
“Just so there’s no confusion, both the new and old bills will still be taken as legal money. They will be used for deals alongside the old N1,000, N500, and N200 bills until the deadline of December 31, 2023. After that date, the old N1,000, N500, and N200 bills will no longer be used.
Background
After many Nigerians complained, the CBN moved the deadline for exchanging old N200, N500, and N1,000 bills from January 31 to February 10. However, the Supreme Court, in response to a suit filed by some states, ruled that the Federal Government, the CBN, and commercial banks cannot keep to the February 10 deadline until a notice about the issue is decided.
But on February 16, President Muhammadu Buhari told the central bank in a national broadcast that old N200 notes could be used along with new N200, N500, and N1,000 banknotes for 60 days, or until April 10, 2023. He also said that Nigeria no longer accepts old N500 and N1,000 coins.
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Governors from the All Progressives Congress (APC), which is the President’s party, were among those who strongly disagreed with his order.
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 openly censured and faulted the President’s directive, arguing that it has no grounds because the case is before the apex court.
Senior Advocates of Nigeria like Femi Falana and Mike Ozekhome both disagreed with the President’s decision, saying that he can’t go against the highest court in the country.
On March 3, the highest court in the country said that old N200, N500, and N1,000 bills will be good until December 31, 2023. This happened after 16 states of the Federation filed a lawsuit to question whether or not the policy was legal.
The 16 states, led by Kaduna, Kogi, and Zamfara, asked Nigeria’s highest court to throw out the policy because it made life hard for innocent Nigerians.
The court then said that the President’s refusal to follow its order from February 8 was a sign of dictatorship. It also said that Buhari broke the Constitution of the Federation by telling the CBN to change the form of the Naira.
After the Supreme Court’s decision on March 3, the Presidency, the Central Bank of Nigeria, and the Attorney General of the Federation didn’t say anything. This left many bank customers and Nigerians confused, since the Supreme Court’s decision went against what the President said on February 16: that old N500 and N1000 notes are banned, but old N200 notes are still good until April 10.
But on March 13, the Presidency said that the President had never told the CBN and the AGF not to follow the order of the highest court.