UPDATED: Council of State supports naira redesign policy, wants ‘aggressive’ circulation – Official

The National Council of States has declared its support for the naira redesign policy of the federal government, an official has said.

Abubakar Malami, Nigeria’s attorney-general, said this while addressing journalists at the end of the council’s meeting at the State House, Abuja.

He said the council supported the policy but charged the central bank to do more to make the new naira notes available across the country.

“Relating to the Naira redesign policy, the policy stands but then the council agreed that there is need for aggressive action on the part of the CBN as it relates to the implementation of the policy by way of ensuring adequate provision being made with particular regard to the supply of the Naira in the system,” he said.

Mr Malami did not, however, say whether the council called for an extension of the 10 February deadline for the use of the old naira notes.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that Friday’s meeting was presided by President Muhammadu Buhari and attended by at least four former Nigerian leaders.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, many state governors and the presiding officers of the National Assembly were also at the meeting.

This newspaper learnt that some of the attendees at the meeting were aggrieved with how the council discussed the naira controversy.

A governor was heard telling his colleagues in Hausa that “Since they stopped us from talking inside(the meeting), let’s go and talk outside (to the press).”

Background

Earlier on Wednesday, the Supreme Court ordered the CBN not to put an end to the use of old naira notes on 10 February as earlier announced.

The interim injunction order was issued by a seven-member panel of the apex court and was led by John Okoro amid an acute scarcity of the newly redesigned N200, N500, and N1,000 currency notes.

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The court gave the order temporarily based on an application filed by three northern states being controlled by the All Progressives Congress (APC)––Kogi, Kaduna and Zamfara States.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that Friday’s meeting was presided by President Muhammadu Buhari and attended by at least four former Nigerian leaders.

Similarly, this newspaper exclusively reported that the CBN Godwin Emefiele admitted during the meeting that the severe cash crunch hurting Nigerians these past weeks was caused by the supply constraint arising from limited capacity to print enough new Naira notes.