President Muhammadu Buhari is reportedly considering extending the validity of old 200, 500 and 1000 naira notes by 60 days.
TheCable reports that this is to avoid disobeying the order of the Supreme Court of Nigeria which ruled that the old notes remain valid until it delivers judgment in the case filed by some states against the federal government.
The CBN had insisted that the deadline of February 10 would not be changed but a senior government official told TheCable that Buhari was worried about the hardship faced by Nigerians as well as the legal implications of disobeying the order of the constitutional court.
The official said that this was the focus of a meeting between Buhari and the leadership of Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) as well as the Progressives Governors Forum until the early hours of Wednesday, February 15.
According to the official, “The resolve was to give room for President Buhari to make concession on the monetary policy and make the following announcements public.
One, that the old naira notes of N1,000, N500 and N200 be allowed free movement in and out of the banks for the next 60 days.
Two, that all three notes will be legal tender during this period, but that any old N500 or N1000 that goes into a bank will not be sent back into circulation.
The president will not disobey court. But he is also concerned about the s¥ffering of Nigerians and wants to find lasting solution to it. It is clear that some militancy is being propagated against the people by elite who have the means to secure the new notes no matter what while the people continue to s¥ffer.”
