Category: News

Nigeria’s North-east and South-east zones have the highest number of polling units (PUs) where the coming general elections will not hold with 67 and 64 units respectively.

Another round of protests broke out on Wednesday in several states across the country, including Oyo, Delta, and Edo, over the scarcity of the new N200, N500, N1,000 notes and rejection of the old naira bills.

The protests turned violent in Ibadan, Oyo State and Udu, near Warri, the commercial hub of Delta State.

Ibadan

There were demonstrations in different parts of Ibadan, such as Mokola, resulting in a gridlock along Eleyele/Eruwa road.

Cars were turned back at some point while some schoolchildren were forced to return home as a result of the protest.

Commercial activities were grounded as the Mokola Road was turned into a football field.

Most major roads were deserted as many residents resorted to trekking long distances.

Some fish sellers took their protest to a private radio station in Ibadan, claiming that they sold all their products on Tuesday, accepting the old notes but on getting to the strongrooms to their bank to deposit the funds, no one was willing to sell to them.

Crowds were seen in front of the CBN office at Dugbe waiting to be attended to in the bid to change old naira notes amid heavy security presence.

Delta

In Delta, the ongoing rampage blocked the major highway with bonfires and other objects at their disposal, destroying automated teller machines (ATMs) belonging to some banks in the area.

Angry youths protested the scarcity of the new redesigned naira notes and the rejection of the old notes by people.

The demonstrations first broke out at Orhuwhorun junction before spreading to the expressway.

Part of the buildings of banks were vandalised by the mob who hurled stones and other objects at the premises, priompting bank workers and their customers to scamper for safety.

Meanwhile, the Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa has appealed for calm and patience.

Okowa’s appeal was contained in a statement by the state Commissioner for Information, Charles Aniagwu.

He called on the people to remain calm while also appealing to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the monetary authorities to take further steps in increasing the money supply in the system.

“We appeal to our brothers and sisters across the state to keep calm in spite of the current travails they are going through as a result of the scarcity of naira notes in the country,” the statement read in part.

“As a government, we are not unaware of your sufferings but we appeal to you to be patient with the monetary authorities as they take steps to improve the money supply in the country.

“We are very much aware of your pains and concerns, but burning down a bank that employs our people will not augur well for us as a nation even as it will not also solve the problem but will further compound the situation.

“Once again, we appeal to you all to sheath your swords while we continue to engage the cbn to ensure more funds are released to the banks in the country.”

The governor’s appeal comes on the heels of protests by some citizens of the state at Orhuwhorun community in Udu Local Government Area (LGA) of the state where a bank’s ATM gallery was reportedly torched.

Edo

A crowd of aggrieved residents were protesting on Akpakpava road in Benin City, the Edo State capital against the inability to access cash in banks.

The road was closed to traffic as tyres were burnt in the middle of the road.

(Channels TV)

The decision of the Federal Government to phase out the N200, N500 and N1000 old Naira notes as valid legal tenders, has created a wide rift among various states of the federation.

Though only three northern states- Kogi, Kaduna and Zamfara- initially instituted an action to challenge the new monetary policy that was introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, however, when the matter came up before the Supreme Court on Wednesday, seven other states applied and were joined as co-plaintiffs in the suit.

The states the apex court allowed to come into the case to challenge FG’s decision, were; Lagos, Cross River, Ogun, Ekiti, Ondo and Sokoto states.

Similarly, President Muhammadu Buhari’s home state, Katsina, also persuaded the court to allow it to file legal processes to nullify the new monetary policy.

On the other hand, Edo and Bayelsa state threw their weight behind FG and the CBN.

The two states, through their various Attorneys-General, secured nod of the apex court to join the case as co-respondents in the suit that originally had only the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami, SAN, as the sole respondent.

However, both Rivers and Kano state told the court that their own case was different, insisting that they raised recondite issues of law that were not part of what the original plaintiffs submitted for determination.

Specifically, the two states, maintained that aside from the issue of the old banknotes, they have a grouse with the N5million and N100, 000 cash withdrawal limits the CBN okayed for corporate entities and individuals, respectively.

Owing to the fresh twist in the case, a seven-man panel of Justices of the court, ordered Kogi, Kaduna and Zamfara states to amend their initial Originating Summons to reflect the new states it joined as interested parties in the matter.

The panel headed by Justice Inyang Okoro equally directed the plaintiffs to ensure that they file and serve all the respondents with the relevant processes, before Friday, even as it adjourned further proceedings in the matter till next week Wednesday.

The apex court said it would consolidate all the cases, stressing that all the states would abide by its decision on the matter.

Meanwhile, before the matter was adjourned, counsel for the three northern states that initiated the litigation, Mr. AbdulHakeem Mustapha, SAN, drew attention of the apex court to the fact that its ex-parte order that restrained FG from implementing the February 10 deadline for the use of the old banknotes, was flouted.

Mustapha, SAN, told the court that contrary to the order, CBN, had since invalidated the old N200, N500 and N1000 notes.

He, therefore, pleaded the apex court to reinstate the interim order, saying he had also filed a process to reflect FG’s disobedience to the court order.

Reacting on behalf of FG, a former AGF, Chief Kanu Agabi, SAN, told the apex court that Mustapha’s claim was within the realm of “mere rumour”.

He maintained that FG was yet to see the process the plaintiffs filed.

Though the apex court said it was not willing to issue another ex-parte order, it, however warned that parties that having submitted the matter for adjudication, they are not expected to take any action that could affect the subject matter of the litigation.

“Once you submit yourself to the court, you have to wait”, head of the panel, Justice Inyang Okoro warned.

“We are all in this country and we can see what is happening. We have seen people destroying ATMs. We pray that there will not be a break down of law and order’, he added.

Speaking to newsmen immediately the court proceedings ended, Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State and his Kaduna counterpart, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, said they were confident that the apex court would arrive at a conclusion that would benefit Nigerians.

“Desperate action deserves desperate measure. We are not against the policy, infact it is the way to go. But its implementation is what we are against”, governor Bello stated.

It will be recalled that the Supreme Court had on February 8, restrained FG from invalidating the use of the old banknotes notes as legal tenders, pending the hearing and determination of the suit by the three northern states.

Though FG, through the AGF, Malami, SAN, said it would obey the ruling of the apex court, however, the CBN, which contended that it was not a party to the suit, declined to extend its February 10 deadline for use of the old banknotes.

Both commercial banks and business owners have continued to reject the old banknotes, while citizens find it difficult to access the re-designed Naira notes.

FG had also filed a preliminary objection to challenge the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court to meddle in the matter.

(Vanguard)

Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele, yesterday, told the Diplomatic Corps that an extension of the February 10 deadline for the circulation of the redesigned N200, N500 and N1, 000 notes was unnecessary.

He spoke at the meeting on the redesigned Naira policy held at the headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Abuja.

Emefiele spoke on a day governors of Kano and Ogun states, Abdullahi Ganduje, and Dapo Abiodun, respectively, threatened to shut down banks in their states, if they continued to reject the old naira notes.

However, the CBN governor noted the challenges posed by the policy but assured that it would be brief since his team was working assiduously to address the issues it had thrown up, including the availability of the new notes.

He blamed the scarcity of the new notes on the activities of some unscrupulous bankers and members of the society, who were trying to sabotage the policy, warning that such people would be sanctioned along with Point of Sales, POS, operators imposing heavy charges on customers.

The CBN governor said: “PoS agents who are supposed to help are getting involved in these activities.

‘’We have EFCC, ICPC working with our monitoring team to arrest any PoS agent that charges any fee because we have made it clear that whatever is their fee, which is not meant to be more than N200 for any amount you exchange that we, CBN, will pay as part of our effort to lessen the burden of this problem.”

Some POS operators charge as much as 20 to 30 per cent of the amount customers withdraw in new notes.

He noted that some powerful public figures are trying to exaggerate the inconveniences arising from the policy but said there is no justification to create undue panic in the society.

According to the CBN boss, the “tension and elevated agitation are by our leaders who should be calming frayed nerves of the citizens.

‘’We believe the large proportion of these agitations are staged, they are sponsored propaganda or an exaggeration of the reality.”

FG to take position after Supreme Court ruling

The Federal Government yesterday stated that it will take decision on the legality of the old currency notes of N200, N500 and N1000 after the determination of the suit filed by some state governments at the nation’s apex court.

Three states, Kogi, Kaduna and Zamfara had dragged the Federal Government to the Supreme Court asking that the February 10 deadline by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, should be extended.

The court had fixed February 15 (today) to determine the suit.

Some Nigerians have accused the Federal Government and the CBN of contempt of court and are insensitive to the hardship many Nigerians are passing through as a result of the scarcity of cash.

But the Federal Government last night said that decision will only be taken after the determination of the suit in the Supreme Court.

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu said: “We wish to state that it is not true that the Federal Government or the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN have taken a preemptive action on the legality of currency as a legal tender in view of the pendency of the case before the Supreme Court.

“The position of the government and the CBN will be made known upon the determination of the suit coming up tomorrow, Garba Shehu said.”

Panic mop-up of Naira notes

On the queues at ATMs, he said: “We have also noticed panic mop-up of notes. The CBN has also noticed that some of our leaders are buying the notes and storing them for whatever purposes.

‘’We have also noticed that some Nigerians are capitalising on the time of transition to charging exorbitant fees. These selfish actions for personal monetary gains are causes of hardship for Nigerians and come at the expense of lives and livelihoods.

“The situation has substantially calmed down since the commencement of Over-The-Counter, OTC, payment to complement ATM disbursement and the use of super agents. There is, therefore, no need to consider any shift from the deadline of February 10.

“There are pockets of pressure in some areas. CBN has also noticed long queues at some bank ATMs and banking halls. While some of these withdrawal requests are genuine, some are simply reprehensible activities of miscreants who do not have intentions of making a withdrawal but seeking quick earnings just to queue up and sell their space for money but the CBN is working hard to shift resources to those areas in order to ease the tension.

“We will continue to issue and circulate new notes but once we get to our optimal level or slightly above, we will seek to put in place a policy that people must not keep money in their homes, they must return it back.”

Benefits of policy so far

The apex bank boss reiterated the benefits of the naira redesign, arguing that it had helped in reducing inflation and a moderating in exchange rates.

Emefiele appealed to the Diplomatic Corps and Nigerians to support the policy which, according to him, has become necessary in the monetary authority’s efforts towards curbing high inflation in the country.

He also said that the positive effects of the policy are already being felt in the economy, with inflation already trending downwards, stressing that it will go a long way in addressing challenges in the foreign exchange market.

“The policy will accelerate the cashless policy of the monetary authorities which has been in the works for many years, spanning different administrations,’’ he said, noting that the current inflation rate is being significantly driven by insecurity which had made it difficult for crop farmers to optimise their potentials, as well as, election spending, and the effects of the global market environment.

G-10 Govs mopping new notes

Noting that money moves in cycles, he said the scarcity of cash being witnessed by Nigerians was because state governors are mopping up the money and stopping it from circulating.

He said: “Since the implementation of the new Naira policy, Nigerians and indeed the system have started seeing the gains. Except for the hitches of the unavailability of cash particularly for small businesses, which is caused by sabotage from those who do not want the policy so they can continue with their illicit trade, other major indicators show that the impact of the policy on our economy is quite positive.

“Also on security, the impact is being felt as kidnappers now know that there is no cash to pay for ransom. In our electoral process, it is now obvious to Nigerians that it is only the vote buyers that are complaining.

“This policy is facing a syndicated attack from a group of governors who we have termed the G-10 Governors.

“These governors have vowed that this policy will not see the light of the day. They are willing to go the extra mile, including making our country ungovernable and undermining constitutional governance and bringing the entire country to a halt, all for their own reasons.”

The text read in part: “The CBN had announced that it deployed N300 billion in cash as the first tranche of cash it disbursed. We all can agree that the money was hijacked and did not trickle down to the people and the people who took hold of it from the commercial banks have not brought it out to circulate.

“They are withholding the money,, using various means including deploying agents who use multiple ATM cards to withdraw the money, colluding with their bank agents to continue to trap the moneys in the banks and buying off cash from business places that ordinarily make huge cash transactions like petrol stations, supermarkets and department stores.

“This has made some of these businesses insist on only cash payment as the profit they make from the sales of the Naira covers for the loss of business from those who do not have the cash to pay.

“We have uncovered a grand plot by 10 governors, who have resolved to make Nigeria ungovernable for President Muhammadu Buhari if he refuses to reverse the new Naira policy.

“It is amazing to note that the governors behind this plot were the same governors who, a couple of years ago, took advantage of every opportunity to praise President Buhari to high heavens.

“However, obviously because the second tenure is coming to an end, these governors now believe that the President is not deserving of their respect. That is quite hypocritical. It means all they were showing the President was sycophantic solidarity, hence we must, therefore, remind them at this point in time that President Buhari is and still remains the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria until May 29, 2023, and not one day before.

“Unfortunately, these governors have switched allegiance to a new godfather, not minding that he is yet to win the Presidential election. They are willing to dare constitutional governance and do anything including creating anarchy just to enthrone him and achieve their narrow political ambitions. Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State as you all know has announced that once their candidate wins, they would cancel the new Naira policy.

“Our intelligence shows that there will be intensified cash-scarcity drama across the geopolitical zones. People will pretend to collapse, people will go naked. There will be pre-arranged fights and many other things to press home their demands.

“Many people have been activated to make this happen. Groups have also been mobilized to daily report at various bank ATM locations to always stand around and help create the impression and make it look like there are crowds at the banks who are not being attended to.

“Scenes will be created and this is expected to put more pressure on the system and lead to the abandonment or reversal of the policy.

‘’It must be noted that this policy has succeeded in reducing the financial recklessness, money laundering and vote buying capacities of these governors, hence the ferocious fight they are giving the policy.

‘’If, like they say, their concern is the suffering of poor citizens in their states, one would now ask: Why have they not thought out any ideas that could make the policy work? Why are they only interested in ensuring that the policy is abandoned or killed?

“In case they do not know, Nigerians are happy that this policy has hit them hard and curtailed their excesses. Nigerians are totally in support of this policy and for now, the governors can cry all they want, the policy lives and the old naira notes are gone for good.

“Their plot to instigate businesses to shut down and go on strike, claiming cash scarcity, will fail as Nigerians have seen through all these. The storyline that has been spun that the cash scarcity was designed to make their candidate look bad is a false narrative; these 10 governors are behind the scarcity to force abandonment.”

Reject old notes, face sanctions, Ganduje, Abiodun threaten banks

Indeed, Kano and Ogun state governments have warned that they would not hesitate to revoke operational licenses of major business owners or take action on anyone who refused to accept the old naira notes as a means of transaction in their states.

Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje of Kano State, who handed down the warning in a statement by the Commissioner for Information and Internal Affairs, Malam Muhammad Garba, yesterday, said the old naira notes were still legal tender.

He said the Supreme Court was emphatic on its interim injunction on the issue of old naira notes, which would continue to be used as legal tender hand-in-hand with the new ones until gradual and final phase out.

The governor noted that it had come to the notice of the government that some business owners, such as supermarkets, malls, banks, restaurants, hotels, traders in markets, filling stations, and motor parks, among others, were in the habit of rejecting the old naira notes for business transactions.

Ganduje said this non-acceptance by some selfish individuals was worsening the already tense situation exacerbated by non-availability of the new naira notes.

“Business and economic activities are seriously affected by the naira redesign and unfortunately, some self-centered individuals are cashing in on the situation to cause further hardship on the people by not accepting the old naira notes during transactions,” the statement added.

He said the people had suffered enough hardship and the state government would not fold its arms and allow a few selfish elements to worsen the situation.

Similarly, Ogun State governor, Dapo Abiodun, threatened to shut down any commercial bank operating in the state that refused to accept old naira notes.

Addressing market men and women at Itoku Kampala market in Abeokuta, as part of his re-election campaign in Abeokuta North Local Government Area, yesterday, Abiodun frow-ned on the action of the banks. He noted that since the new naira notes were not available, commercial banks must accept the old notes to ease the suffering of the people, urging the people to remain calm, assuring that his government was working assiduously to ensure that the present situation was brought under control.

(Vanguard)

The State Security Services (SSS) has said that the invitation of Femi Fani-Kayode, a spokesperson of the APC Presidential Campaign Council on Monday, was in respect of an investigation.

The Public Relations Officer of SSS, Peter Afunanya, said this in a statement on Tuesday in Abuja.

Mr Afunanya said the investigation was in respect of some of the former minister’s allegations and insinuations relating to issues relevant to national security.

He said Mr Fani-Kayode was made to face a panel which interviewed him on the subject matter before granting him administrative bail.

He said the former aviation minister had been directed to make routine returns to the SSS with effect from Wednesday till otherwise while his investigation continues.

Mr Afunanya called on political parties and their media managers to apply restraint in their utterances and public communication engagements before and after the general elections.

He said the call was to avoid heating the polity and evoking tendencies that could lead to violent reactions as well as undermine peace and order.

Mr Fani-Kayode, via a tweet last week, alleged that the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, met secretly with some serving military generals. He said the meeting could be part of a plan to destabilize the country and pave the way for a coup d’etat.

The APC campaign spokesperson appeared before the secret police on Monday during which he was interrogated for about five hours.

After the interrogation, Mr Fani-Kayode said he regretted what he said.

The Nigerian Army has since denied the alleged secret meeting with Atiku and described it as “wicked and very malicious propaganda”.

(NAN)

With barely eleven days to the general elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has disclosed that Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) cashless policy may hinder the Commission’s ability to conduct the election.

INEC FCT Resident Electoral Commissioner, Yahaya Bello, made this known at the North-Central Stakeholders Roundtable on the 2023 General Elections which was organized by the the Centre for Transparency Advocacy (CTA) in Abuja, yesterday.

“As we are seated here, 99 percent of us are affected by the cashless policy. INEC is also affected. We have 2,822,000 polling units. Before the election day, we are going to employ the services of vehicle providers. We have had a lot of meetings with National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW). We have also brought in Maritime Workers Union. We have more than 12,000 adhoc staff in FCT that we are going to give cash for food and none of them will take a cheque, none of them will accept a transfer.

“There are 12,000 people that will require N5,000 each on Friday night. And also, those who are going to transport our materials and the security to the polling units. They are going to need cash to do that. Also, you will not take a security person to a polling unit from morning till evening without giving him money to eat and I don’t think you expect him to go to the POS to withdraw the N1,000 you are going to give him.”

Bello, however, stated that INEC was in discussions with the CBN to see how the problem could be handled.

“This policy does not affect only INEC FCT in particular. It is going to affect the whole Commission nation wide. So, the Chairman of the Commission, Professor, Mahmood Yakubu has been with the CBN governor, they also consulted and briefed the national Council of States, and the Presidency. This is an issue that is being tackled at the highest level because it affects the whole election generally. For now, we are going to wait for the outcome of the negotiations and discussions that are ongoing. So that we will know exactly what is going on.”

The CTA Executive Director, Faith Nwadishi said the Centre which is an election observation group will be observing the 2023 general election by deploying 2000 observers across the country to cover the 774 local government areas.

“These observers will be trained on Election Observation, Electoral Act 2022 and adherence to INEC Election Guidelines,” Nwadishi noted.

She further advised citizens to shun voting buying and selling which undermines the election, urging that candidates should campaign based on issues and not heat up the polity and creating fears in the hearts of people who want to vote.

The ED also called on security agencies to assure the masses of adequate protection within the election periods.

Nothwistanding the cash swap policy threat, the Plateau State, Dr. Oliver Tersoo Agundu, has reassured Plateau residents that the commission was ready to conduct free, fair and credible elections in the state.

He noted that elections will not hold in six polling units with one in Bassa; three Jos North; one Mnagu and one in Wase Local Government Areas respectively because no voter registered in such polling units.

Speaking during a stakeholders meeting on the collation of PVCs and preparedness for the 2023 general elections in Jos, Dr. Agundu informed the stakeholders that the commission has taken delivery of non sensitive materials of different categories like ballot s boxes, voting cubicle and deployed those materials to respective local government areas.

The REC noted that configuration of BVAS to specific polling units is ongoing and assured that the commission has also taken delivery of reasonable quantity as back-up for any eventuality during voting. He explained that there is no going back on the deployment of BVAS as an instrument for accreditation of prospective voters to ensure credibility and transparency of the next elections.

(Sun)

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has published 240 polling units across the country with no registered voters.

The INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, had earlier on Monday disclosed at a meeting with political parties in Abuja that the polling units have no registered voters, adding that the total number of polling units in the country is now 176,606.

According to Yakubu, voters assigned to new polling units will receive text messages to know their new polling units before the February 25 and March 11, 2023 general elections.

The electoral chief also said voters can locate and confirm their polling units before the general elections by sending regular texts or WhatsApp messages to a dedicated telephone number which will be uploaded on INEC social media platforms.

In January, the commission presented a register containing 93,469,008 voters for the 2023 general elections and said it does not contemplate any postponement of the election date.

See the full list of Nigeria’s 240 polling units with no registered voters and where voting will not take place on 25th February (Presidential/National Assembly Election) and 11th March 2023 (Governorship/State House of Assembly Election).

https://twitter.com/inecnigeria/status/1625170335053017091?t=deoNQrLjxzFrtvltBthWUA&s=19

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said elections will not hold in 240 polling units.

The chairman of the commission, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, disclosed this at a meeting with political parties on Monday

INEC said the 240 polling units without registered voters spread across 28 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The INEC boss said the Commission will release a comprehensive list of these polling units by name, code number, and their locations by state, local government, and registration area.

He added the electoral umpire has also compiled the register of the voters, noting that its state offices will give it wide publicity, especially for those who may not have provided their telephone numbers during voter registration or those whose numbers may have changed.

Yakubu said, “240 polling units without registered voters spread across 28 States and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). They range from one polling unit to 12 polling units in each state and the FCT, except Taraba and Imo states with 34 and 38 polling units respectively.

“No new registrants chose the polling units and no voters indicated interest to transfer to them during the last Continuous Voter Registration (CVR), mainly for security reasons. This means that no elections will hold in these polling units.

“With this development, the number of polling units where elections will hold nationwide on 25th February 2023 and 11th March 2023 is now 176,606. Hard copies of the list are included in your folders for this meeting.

“Above all, Nigerians deserve the right to know the locations of these polling units. Accordingly, the soft copy of the list has been uploaded to our website and social media platforms for public information and guidance.

“Closely related to the distribution of voters is the identification of polling units. From the feedback we received from our officials and accredited observers following the recent nationwide mock accreditation using the BVAS, it is clear that some voters could not easily identify their polling units. This should not happen on election day,” he added.

Yakubu, however, urged voters in the country to confirm the locations of their polling units through a dedicated portal on INEC website, adding that all voters who have been assigned to new polling units will receive text messages from the commission indicating their polling units.

(Daily Trust)

As part of efforts to deliberately stall the Supreme Court ruling on a suit by three state governments against the move by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to phase out the use of the old N200, N500 and N1,000, which comes up for hearing on Wednesday, governors of some states in the country have chosen to continue to file for joinder in the matter.

The suit which was originally filed by Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara states have been joined by Ondo, Kano and Ekiti states, with Rivers state also indicating its preparedness to do same.

Sources at the Federal Ministry of Justice that disclosed this to THISDAY on Sunday, also revealed that as of close of business on Friday, the ministry was yet to receive the certified true copy of the Supreme Court ruling on the currency issue.

The sources stressed that the design of the state governors, who were joining the Supreme Court suit was to delay the judgement and have the old currency run till after the election.

One of the sources, who pleaded to remain anonymous, said, “It is the design of the governors, who are adding many joinder suits, to delay the judgement and try to keep the state of affairs whereby the old currency would continue to be in use, while they lobby Supreme Court justices so that they cannot reach a judgement, and to push the Supreme Court decision on this matter until after the presidential election.

“They want to use the cash for the presidential election. So, they are adding more joinder suits to delay the outcome of the judgement so that the two currencies can work together. So, what we see is that the vote-buyers are fighting back.”

The revelation came just as governors of the 36 states of the federation rose from a meeting at the weekend in Abuja with a resolution to direct their Attorneys General to review the suit with a view to consolidating the legal reliefs pursued by the states.

The 36 governors also asked the federal government and the CBN to respect the rule of law and halt the currency restrictions, which they argued were causing an economic crisis.

The governors made the assertions in a communiqué issued at the end of a meeting of the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF), which was signed by the forum’s chairman, Rt. Hon. Aminu Tambuwal.

The Supreme Court had in a ruling on February 8 suspended the CBN’s February 10 deadline to stop the use of old currency notes. The bank had ordered citizens to swap out old N1, 000, N500, and N200 banknotes for a redesigned currency by the deadline. But the apex court, ruling in an ex parte application by three states – Zamfara, Kogi and Kaduna – stopped the CBN from banning the old notes pending the hearing and determination of the case. It fixed February 15 for hearing.

The move to ban the old banknotes had caused cash shortages, remonstrations and attacks on banks in some places.

Also, yesterday, Ekiti State Government applied to be joined as a co-plaintiff in the suit against the federal government at the Supreme Court on the CBN’s currency redesign.

However, the central bank told the Federal High Court, in Akure, that extending the expiry date for the old naira notes would jeopardise the fight against fraud, corruption and criminal activities in the country.

Meanwhile, ahead of the February 25, 2023 presidential election, the Catholic Bishops under the auspices of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) has charged Nigerians to resist the dubious practice of vote buying.

The 36 state governors urged the federal government and the CBN to listen to the voice of reason expressed by Nigerians and several other stakeholders, including the Council of State, before the damage to the economy became too great to fix by the next administration.

The state chief executives accused the apex bank of pursuing a currency confiscation programme and not the currency exchange policy envisaged under Section 20 (3) of the CBN Act, 2007.

The governors stated that although the Attorney General of the Federation promised that the federal government would comply with the ruling of the Supreme Court halting the CBN’s plan to end the use of the old currency notes, they were yet to observe changes in the financial system.

The communiqué stated, “We, members of the NGF, at our meeting today discussed critical issues of national interest and resolved as follows:

“First, we express our sympathies and support with Nigerians who are experiencing great difficulties under the current CBN naira re-design and cash withdrawal restrictions policy. We feel your pain and we are determined to employ all legitimate channels to ease the situation.

“It has become necessary to make a distinction between the CBN naira redesign policy backed by Section 20 (3) of the CBN Act, 2007, and the aspirational policy of going cashless, both of which are mutually exclusive at this time.

“It is our considered view that what the CBN is at present pursuing is a currency confiscation programme, not the currency exchange policy envisaged under S20 (3) of the CBN Act, 2007.”

The communique explained that currency confiscation involved a situation whereby the liquidity provided to the general public was grossly insufficient due to the restrictions placed on the amount that could be withdrawn, regardless of the amount deposited.

The governors’ forum noted that the current approach of the CBN raised concerns about the respect for the civil liberties and rights of Nigerians as it relates to their freedom to use legitimately earned income as they so wish.

The communique continued, “The forum believes that to deploy a cashless policy and deepen digital transactions, the best practice around the world is to create a suite of incentives to attract customers; rather than a draconian approach, as we have witnessed in the last three months.

“The argument by the CBN for what it describes as the astronomical increase in the currency in circulation as the basis for this policy is not supported by its own data. According to the CBN, the currency in circulation increased from N1.4 trillion in 2015, to N3.23 trillion in October 2022. The bank appears not to have taken into consideration the increase in the size of the country’s nominal GDP over this period, the doubling of consumer prices, rising population, and the impact of the humongous Ways and Means advances to the federal government by the Central Bank of Nigeria over this period.

“In the circumstances, it is safe to draw either of two conclusions – the CBN data may be incomplete or in fact, Nigerians may have done exceptionally well in the transition to a cashless economy.

“In addition, considering the sizeable informal sector in the nation, the amount of banknotes created in exchange so far by the CBN implies it vastly underestimated the economy’s actual cash needs.”

The governors said the inability to use the new notes had engendered far-reaching economic effects, “Leading to the emergence of the naira black market, severe food inflation, variable commodities prices based on the method of exchange, and long queues as well as crowds around Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) and banking halls across the country, with individuals hoping to get a fraction of their money in new notes to meet their daily livelihood.”

According to the state governors, the country runs the risk of a CBN-induced recession.

The governors said in the communique, “Consequently, we call on the federal government and the CBN to respect the rule of law and listen to the voice of reason expressed by Nigerians and several other stakeholders, including the Council of State, before the damage to our economy becomes too great to fix by the next administration.

“Members rose from the meeting agreeing to direct their Attorneys General to review the suit at the Supreme Court with a view to consolidating the legal reliefs pursued by states.”

Resist Politicians’ Vote-buying Antics, Catholic Bishops Tell Nigerians

However, the CBCN has charged Nigerians to resist the dubious practice of vote buying.

The bishops urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) not to toy with the confidence and trust Nigerians placed on them by ensuring that the processes involved in the forthcoming elections are bereft of all forms ambiguity capable of offending the collective sensibility of Nigerians.

In his Pastoral Letter delivered on Sunday, at the opening of the conference, CBCN President, Archbishop of Owerri, Most Rev. Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji, urged the electorate to resolve to vote according to their conscience and convictions.

While condemning vote-buying, Ugorji said the practice of inducing the poor and vulnerable voters to cast their votes for a particular candidate in exchange for some financial reward seeks to deny such citizens their real voice and choice in the electoral process.

“More to the point, such brazen use of wealth offends the dignity of the poor and vulnerable while making it increasingly difficult for good but poor candidates to contest and win elections.

“Therefore, we urge Nigerians to stoutly resist the odious practice and resolve to vote according to one’s conscience and convictions,” he said.

Ugorji while cautioning politicians to be mindful of the tone of their campaign messages, also reminded the leadership of the country’s judiciary not to engage in abuse judicial power and office.

He expressed regret that, “judicial corruption has risen as politicians seek to importune judges with unprintable sums of money to overturn the will of the people in fair elections.”

Speaking, the president of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) said the association had provided guidelines to all Christians, urging them to use factors like character, capacity and competence in choosing the preferred presidential candidate.

He said CAN had also concluded the training of total of 1200 observers who would be deployed at national and local levels to monitor the 2023 general elections.

The Archbishop used the occasion to condemn the attack on supporters of the Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, by thugs during their rally in Lagos, describing it as worrisome.

In his goodwill message, the Dean of the Church in Nigeria, Anglican Communion, Most Rev. Buns Lamido, who represented the Prelate, enjoined Nigerians to participate actively in the process of governance.

He explained that participation was a key element of good governance system which provides citizens the opportunity to monitor and influence public decision, processes and actions.

(Arise News)

The governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Enugu State, Peter Mbah, has said he performed his one year compulsory service and was honourably discharged by the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).

He described as false and a campaign of calumny the report that he made a plea bargain with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), as he was not even part of the trial in question.

Making the clarifications, at the weekend, in Enugu during a phone-in radio programme, Freedom Square, Mbah said though he broke in his service due to his bar studies, he later completed it and was accordingly issued with a discharge certificate.

He said: “On the NYSC saga, I did my NYSC. I served and was honourably discharged. I have my discharge certificate. My place of primary assignment was Udeh and Co. I think the confusion was because I had a break. As an overseas graduate, when we were done with our Bar Part I, the next thing was for us to do Bar Part II, but we were just completing Bar Part 1 when the bar final students started. So, we were encouraged by the then deputy director general (DDG) of Nigerian Law School, Kole Abayomi, who was the DDG of Lagos campus where I did my Bar Part I, to go and do our youth service. So, we went to start our youth service.

“Eight months into the youth service, we were told to come back to do our Bar Final. We started the Bar Final and the honourable thing for me to do was to basically write to the NYSC to say, ‘Please, I am going to do my Bar Final and I want to break my service year’. The letter is still documented. So, I went and completed my Bar Final and went back and completed the remaining months of my service. I still have the letter of NYSC remobilising me to go and finish from where I stopped.

“So, when eventually I completed, the certificate I was given has the same date as my original set. Therefore, if you don’t have this background, you will be wondering, ‘You should be in Law School this period, why should you have an NYSC certificate?’ But just as I said, the documents are all there and can speak for themselves.

“So, I did my youth service as an honourable person and all these processes were documented and my remaining months werecompleted and my certificate issued to me by the NYSC.”

On the alleged plea bargain, the PDP governorship candidate said he got involved with EFCC because of the offices he held in the state at various times in the past, chief of staff and commissioner for finance, hence he volunteered to go to the commission to make some clarifications.

Mbah said: “But, what I can assure you is that when I got originally involved with this EFCC matter, there was a letter written to the state demanding for certain officers for an interrogation or interview as they referred to it then and my name wasn’t mentioned in that letter. I volunteered to go to that interview because of the office I was holding. So, it was out of my own self-volition that I went to speak to the EFCC.

“So, to cut the long story short, I have never been convicted by the EFCC and I have never engaged in any plea bargain of whatsoever kind. What happened was that even before the trial commenced in the matter in question, my name and two other people were struck out. And it wasn’t as if I was the one that applied for my name to be struck out; it was the prosecution.

“I never attended any trial for whatever charge that was brought at the time. I was never a target of the investigation or whatever allegation or suspicion at the time. They thought, at best, I was to be used, maybe as a placeholder. These are public records.

“If, indeed, the people that are peddling these rumours and fake news are interested in knowing the truth, these documents are public records. You don’t need to make any effort to find it out. And again, when you have people in a race and they do not believe in a fair contest, to them it would appear as if the will of the people can be thwarted through a court and all they rely on is to see how that can be achieved.

“I have been a victim of several malicious attacks; people engaging in politics of lies and campaign of calumny of all sorts. I want to put the record straight, I have never, never made a plea bargain, and I challenge anyone with a shred or modicum of evidence where I did to tender it. As I said, I have never been to any trial. It was the prosecution who moved that my name be struck out. So, I was never a part of any trial or any plea bargain.”

(Sun)