The Central Bank of Nigeria has come under scrutiny regarding its stance on the validity of both old and newly released Naira notes.
Afam Ogene, the Leader of the Labour Party Caucus in the House of Representatives, expressed concerns regarding the Central Bank’s recent statements. This commentary followed the Central Bank's clarification that the latest ruling by the Supreme Court effectively contradicted its previous position.
The Central Bank noted that the Supreme Court’s ruling did not specify a definitive date for when the old Naira notes would no longer be considered valid legal tender.
It is pertinent to recall that on October 24, the House addressed this issue in a motion introduced by Ogene, urging the Central Bank to clarify the status of both Naira notes currently in circulation. The motion was titled “Need for Central Bank of Nigeria to Sensitise Nigerians about the Non-legal Status of Old Naira Notes from January 1, 2025.”
Ogene remarked that despite an unintended factual error in the motion regarding the concurrent validity of the old and redesigned notes, the Central Bank’s lack of clear policy direction has led to an embarrassing situation.
He acknowledged the mix-up or inadvertent omission of the Supreme Court’s ongoing pronouncement regarding the validity of both Naira note versions. He emphasized that the House's intervention, based on the motion, was not conclusive.
Thus, the House instructed its Committee on Banking Regulations to engage with the Central Bank and provide a report within 21 days.
According to reports from NAN, the motion referenced a prior Supreme Court ruling that established a similar deadline as a result of litigation concerning the controversial policies of the Central Bank.
In response to the House's resolution, the Central Bank's statement suggested that the House's actions were "calculated to disrupt the country’s payment system."
He said, “The CBN also urged the people to disregard the information, quoting the latest Supreme Court pronouncement.
“Which country in the world runs its economy with two different sets of unidentical currency notes?
“What was the intention of the CBN in introducing new sets of notes; was it not with an aim at eventually replacing the old sets?”
He also decried the dilapidated nature of some currencies emanating from the vaults of the nation’s commercial banks.
“Daily, citizens lose as much as between N5,000 to N10,000 for every N100,000 cashed in various banking halls, due to mutilated and torn notes.
“The CBN, as the country’s apex bank and regulator of the sector, cannot hide under the legalese of ‘deadline ad infinitum’ to shirk its responsibilities to the banking public,” he said.
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