Indications emerged last night that the federal and the state governments are considering out-of-court settlement of the litigations trailing the naira policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Daily Trust gathered.
Daily Trust reported that the Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara state governments had approached the Supreme Court, seeking the apex bank to be restrained from going ahead with the February 10 deadline for the circulation of old naira notes.
On their parts, Bayelsa and Edo states have joined as co-defendants with the federal government. The apex court yesterday fixed all the suits for hearing on Wednesday, February 22.
However, last night, it emerged that the federal government has reached out to some of the states to settle the matter out-of-court.
The Kaduna State government, via a statement, last night, said officials of the federal government have contacted Governor Nasir El-Rufai and some of his colleagues to settle the matter out of court.
A statement by the Special Adviser to El-Rufai on (Media & Communication), Muyiwa Adekeye, said senior officials of the federal government have reached some governors, including El-Rufai, on phone to initiate discussions on a possible out-of-court settlement.
“The terms they proposed were to allow only the old N200 note to remain legal tender and be circulated by the CBN till 10 April 2023. They claimed that the CBN had already destroyed the old N500 and N1000 notes that had been deposited, but that those persons who still held the old notes could redeem them up to 10 April 2023.
“These were not considered as serious proposals, for obvious reasons. Circulating the old N200 notes alone would not be sufficient to relieve widespread human suffering in Kaduna State and indeed in Nigeria today. They knew that and that is why they falsely claimed that the CBN had already destroyed the old N500 and N1000 notes.
“This is contrary to the facts available to the governors to the effect that the old notes were in the custody of commercial bank branches throughout Nigeria until the evening of Monday, February 13, and not a single N500 or N1000 had been destroyed.
“It is also a non-starter to insist on a new cut-off date without first assuring that sufficient new notes would have been printed and circulated. The information available to the governors also indicates that the Mint will need at least 12 months to print the minimum amount of N1 trillion needed to ensure a functioning trade and exchange environment in Nigeria,” he said.
Efforts to get the reaction of the federal government yielded no result as a presidential spokesperson, Garba Shehu, declined to comment on the matter. (Daily Trust)
