21 February 2022
A group of civil society organisations has challenged the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele to publish the amount of the new naira notes disbursed to each commercial bank and the list of persons that collected the billions from the banks since the launch in December 2022.
The Group made this demand following the the claims by the CBN governor that the disbursed cash to the commercial banks have been mopped up by politicians.
otherwise.
The group, under the aegis of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, described the suit filed by the states as “pretentious posturing”. Who described the action of some state governors as hypocritical said they have never supported Nigerians when it equally mattered.
In a statement titled, ‘State of the nation’, the group said, “their taking sides with the people is a carefully organised deception as they have chosen to keep mute in situations of great suffering of the people.
“They have never sided with Nigerians against their continued suffering including collapse of education, healthcare system, insecurity and other terrible living conditions.
To make matters worse, the Federal Government has outright refused to, and even countermand, the pronouncement of the Supreme Court on the deadline for the status of the old denominations of the Naira as legal tender.
“This separation is meant to check excesses of each arm, guard against dictatorial tendencies through respect for the rule of law and sustenance of democracy. It is tragic that the government has chosen to set a bad example of disrespect for court orders and the rule of law.
“These acts by the Presidency and the Governor of the CBN in flagrantly disobeying the ruling of the Supreme court on the issue of the deadline for the old currency being legal tender amounts not only to a clear and precipitate undermining of the rule of law, but also a wanton disregard for the principles of the separation of powers at the heart of our constitutional democracy.
“It must also, in particular, make the lower denominations of the naira available for the operations and convenience of citizens in the informal sector and small business operators who, by acts of omission of the FGN and CBN, have become the primary victims of the assumed well-intended naira redesign exercise.”
