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Naira Redesign: Suspicion, Anxiety Grow As Malami Opposes El-Rufai, Others

Published

3 years ago

February 9, 2023

Editor

Twenty-four hours to the deadline set by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, for the swap of the old naira notes, there is a high level of anxiety across the country.

The Supreme Court had on Wednesday temporarily halted the move by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, to ban the use of the old naira notes from February 10, 2023.

A 7-member panel led by Justice John Okoro halted the move while ruling in an ex-parte application brought by three northern States of Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara.

The three States had specifically applied for 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 time frame 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”.

Moving the application on Wednesday, counsel to the applicants, Mr A. I. Mustapha, SAN, had urged the apex court to grant the application in the interest of justice and the well-being of Nigerians.

He stated that the policy of the government has led to an “excruciating situation that is almost leading to anarchy in the land.”

The ruling has since generated mixed reactions from across the country.

While some citizens, including the camp of the APC Presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu are hailing the ruling, others have asked President Muhammadu Buhari to override it with an executive order.

Few hours after the ruling, the Governor of the CBN, Godwin Emefiele met with President Buhari at the Aso Rock Villa.

Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami, SAN, has already filed processes challenging the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court to suspend the scheduled deadline.

Malami, in a preliminary objection he filed on behalf of the Federal Government, applied for an order striking out the suit that three Northern States filed to halt the full implementation of the new monetary policy that was introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN.

He is the sole defendant in the suit marked: SC/CV/162/2023, where he applied for its outright dismissal on the basis that the three States lacked the locus-standi.

Listing his grounds for challenging the power of the Supreme Court to intervene in the matter, Malami accused the three States of opposing FG’s power, through its agency, the CBN, to withdraw old banknotes and introduce new ones.

Nigerians are anxiously awaiting the next step of the CBN, especially with the deadline ending on Friday, February 10, just as President Buhari had earlier asked for one week to take a major decision on the matter one way or the other.

Speaking to DAILY POST on Wednesday, the Head of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Digital Media, Barrister Tony Ehilebo claimed of a certain intelligence that the ruling party, All Progressives Congress, APC, is planning to swap N21 billion it had set out for vote-buying.

He, however, said that the efforts of Governor Nasir El-Rufia of Kaduna State and his cohorts to stop the CBN policy will fail because the States lacked such powers.

He alleged that, “The intelligence reaching us is that the APC, especially in States that they control are using the instrumentality of the State government and trying to swap N21 billion.

“We don’t know if this has gone through or if it has happened but we have raised all the necessary alarms.

“These are the questions we should be asking. We expect that the NFIU which has direct access to any suspicious cash transaction should be on top of its job.

“I’m one of the advocates, one of the drafters of the creation of the National Financial Intelligence Unit Bill and I expect it to live up to expectation, which is why I don’t have any problem with the CBN policy.

“It may not even favour the PDP as far as I’m concerned but it is in the best interest of Nigeria. We’ll really like whoever Nigerians want, which I believe is the PDP at this point in time.”

Speaking further on the recent Supreme Court injunction, he added, “It is a normal procedure of the court. When you run to the court with the cry that lives are being affected, it is the Court’s duty to first intervene and then bring all parties to the table and provide opportunity for response.

“That is why injunctions only have a lifespan of seven days at most. However, I suspect that this will be reversed. If you notice, it was given on 7th and it expires on 15th and that is when the hearing proper is.

“If I were the CBN, on the 15th I’ll carry on with that policy. Of course, the CBN is legitimately carrying out its function and I don’t think the States have any say whatsoever to impede on functions that are constitutionally guaranteed by the banks and other financial institutions’ acts.

“The CBN is guaranteed to be independent of the judiciary and free from the encumbrance of people like El-rufai and his cohorts.”

But reacting to the allegations of planning to buy votes and rig the forthcoming election, Comrade Okpokwu Ogenyi, Convener, Concerned APC Members and member APC Presidential Campaign Council and Civil Society Directorate, wondered why the APC whose government introduced the BVAS and signed the Electoral Act 2022 into law, should be the one being accused of planning to rig elections.

Speaking to DAILY POST, he said, “Yes. Some members of my party are in court to challenge the policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria and some of the reasons they gave were very clear.

“El-Rufia made it clear that in the entire Borno State, it is only two local governments that banks are operating.

“The same in Yobe State. He said that he was campaigning against the effect of the policy on the people. He even said the policy has nothing to do with the CBN but Mr. President who changed currency even in his first tenure as military head of state.

“That the timing is wrong. In my personal opinion, I want to tell you that Governor El-Rufia is in court to seek redress in his capacity as governor of Kaduna State. He is speaking for the people of Kaduna State not for the entire All Progressives Congress.

“On the allegations of swapping over N21b for vote, let me say that just yesterday, the party launched the Renewed Hope Ambassadors of Nigeria to mobilise 20-man canvassers in each of the polling units.

“A party that is resorting to vote-buying will not initiate such a volume of projects. I want you to also know that my party is not ready to buy votes. The BVAS was introduced by my party.

“The Electoral Act 2022 was signed by my party. So the party is putting up measures to checkmate some of the excesses during elections, such as rigging, vote-buying and all of that.”
DAILY POST

News

BREAKING: Former Customs Comptroller-General, Ahmed Aliyu Mustapha, Is Dead

Published

2 hours ago

August 28, 2025

Editor

Dr. Ahmed Aliyu Mustapha, who served as Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service from 1999 to 2003, has passed away.

Adamawa State Governor, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, confirmed his death in a statement shared on his social media pages on Thursday.

“Deeply saddened by the passing of Alhaji Ahmed Aliyu Musdafa, former CG of Customs. A man of service, dignity & duty whose legacy will live on. My prayers are with Lamido Adamawa, the Musdafa royal family & all who mourn him. May Allah grant him Aljannah Firdaus,” Fintiri wrote.

Mustapha, an elder brother to the Lamido of Adamawa, Alhaji Dr. Muhammadu Barkindo Aliyu Mustapha, also held the revered traditional title of Sardauna Adamawa.

He joined the NCS as a young cadet and steadily rose through the ranks before his appointment as Comptroller-General in 1999, at the dawn of the Fourth Republic.

His tenure was marked by strengthened anti-smuggling operations, and he played a central role in several national task forces established to combat economic sabotage. In 1988, he received the Ministerial Award for Outstanding Performance, a recognition of his distinguished service.

Mustapha retired from the Service in December 2003, after more than three decades of active duty. In retirement, he remained a respected elder statesman within the Customs community and the Adamawa Emirate, where his counsel and influence continued to be widely sought until his passing.

News

Lagos Man Killed In Fight, Suspect Arrested

Published

4 hours ago

August 28, 2025

Editor

The Lagos State Police Command has arrested a man, Ebuka Adindu, for allegedly stabbing Sodiq Ibrahim to death during a violent confrontation in the Mandillas area of Lagos on Wednesday.

A social media user, @JackFleet, who first raised the alarm on X.com, wrote, “There’s a fracas going on presently in Lagos Island, Mandillas to be precise.

“Two guys were fighting, and it resulted in the death of one of them. Right now, street urchins have taken the law into their hands, stabbing innocent people on the street.”

Reacting to the post, the command’s spokesperson, Benjamin Hundeyin, dismissed the claim that miscreants had taken over the area.

“Your claim of street urchins taking over the street is false. Please do not cause unnecessary panic. DPOs Lion Building and Ebute-Ero are currently on the ground with their men, maintaining the restored peace.

“Also, the suspect has been arrested and is in custody for further necessary actions,” Hundeyin stated in a post on Wednesday.

In a follow-up message to PUNCH Metro on Wednesday, Hundeyin clarified that the incident was not a tribal clash, as was being speculated.

“The Lagos State Police Command hereby wishes to inform the general public that there was no tribal clash or disturbance between any ethnic groups and others inside Balogun Market today.

“There was an incident of a free-for-all between some hoodlums and miscreants in the Balogun Market in the early hours of today at around 11 am.

“During the fight, one Ebuka Adindu from Abia State stabbed one Sodiq Ibrahim from Kogi State to death, and the said Ebuka Adindu in turn stabbed himself on the shoulder and became unconscious.

“He is currently under arrest in the hospital, where he is being treated. Investigation into the matter will be concluded, and he will be prosecuted after he has been discharged from the hospital,” Hundeyin explained.

The police stressed that no innocent lives were lost, no other injuries were recorded, and no goods or property in the market was destroyed.

The statement read, “The Lagos State Police Command wishes to reiterate that the incident is not a tribal clash but purely between miscreants and hoodlums around the Balogun Market. Normalcy has been restored.

“Marketers and the general public on the Island and other parts of Lagos State are encouraged to go about their businesses and other lawful endeavours without fear or apprehension.”

Hundeyin, quoting the state Commissioner of Police, Olohundare Jimoh, called on Lagos State residents “to remain law-abiding and cooperate with the police command to sustain existing peace in the state and not to spread fear in the mind of the public, as Lagos is generally peaceful.”

News

JUST IN: NLC Defies Edo Assembly Resolution, Inaugurates Factional Caretaker Committee

Published

4 hours ago

August 28, 2025

Editor

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has inaugurated Professor Monday Igbafen as Caretaker Committee Chairman of the Edo State Council despite resistance from the state House of Assembly.

This particular faction is supported by the President of the Nigerian Labour Congress, Comrade Joe Ajero, while the Edo State government is in support of the Comrade Bernard Joman Egwakhide-led faction.

The swearing-i was initially slated to take place at the Adams Oshiomhole Labour House in Benin City on Thursday, but the venue was locked and secured, apparently in a bid to block the event from taking place.

This came two days after the state House of Assembly passed a resolution urging the NLC to suspend the inauguration and instead recognize Comrade Bernard Joman Egwakhide as the rightful leader of the union in Edo.

In spite of this, the NLC delegation from the national secretariat, led by Comrade Oluwole Adeleye Sunday, pressed on with their plans.

The group initially moved to the ASUU Secretariat within the Ugbowo campus of the University of Benin, however, after information about that location was leaked, the team quickly relocated.

The inauguration was eventually conducted at an undisclosed venue under tight security.

Speaking during the ceremony, Comrade Oluwole charged the newly constituted faction to restore unity within the state chapter.

“You are to resolve all contending issues and work towards electing new executives,” he said.

In his acceptance remarks, Professor Igbafen pledged to mend divisions within the Edo NLC, assuring stakeholders of a renewed focus on solidarity and internal cohesion.

At NLC Secretariat, operatives of the Nigeria Police Force sealed off the Edo State secretariat of the Nigeria Labour Congress otherwise known as the Adams Oshiomhole Labour House.

Similarly, the main gate of the University of Benin was beefed up with police personnel.

Some suspected thugs were also seen loitering around the secretariat.

A police Armoured Personnel Carrier was deployed to the NLC secretariat,
while heavy security at the Labour House and the UNIBEN main gate were present.

Some NLC leaders from neighbouring states, who were scheduled to attend the inauguration, at the Labour House, expressed regret that they could not access the secretariat.

Speaking, Comrade Augustine Igben from the Maritime Workers Union, said he was embarrassed when he was not allowed entry into the Edo Labour House.

“I felt embarrassed about the whole thing. How can the police barricade the Labour House when there is no war. It is a Labour issue. They should allow Labour to settle the issues themselves.” He said.