Naira redesign: Supreme Court adjourns hearing judgement till March 3

By Olumide David

The Supreme Court has fixed March 3 to deliver judgment in the suit challenging the naira redesign policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Led by Justice John Okoro, the seven-member panel of the apex court communicated the decision at their sitting on Wednesday.

Earlier, the Supreme Court had insisted that it will hear the consolidated suits instituted by the 10 state governments against the Federal Government challenging the implementation of the policy.

During the proceeding, Moyosore Onigbanjo, who is the counsel for Lagos State, prayed the court to bar the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, from defending the respondents, arguing that the “issue of contempt, supersedes issue of jurisdiction”.

But responding, Justice Okoro, said, “You are not a stranger to this country. We don’t want a situation where the judiciary will be a scapegoat. We refuse to be the scapegoat.

“We are hearing this matter today. We don’t intend to keep this matter longer… whether they obey it or not.”

Expectations were high as the Supreme Court consolidated the suit and many had expected that apex court would finally bring clarity on the matter which had brought so much anger and confusion.

With the consolidation, the plaintiffs in the suit are the Attorneys General (AGs) of Kaduna, Kogi, Zamfara, Ondo, Ekiti, Katsina, Ogun, Cross River, Sokoto, and Lagos states while the defendants are the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN), as well as the AGs of Bayelsa and Edo states.