Femi Gbajabiamila, Speaker of the House of Representatives, has urged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to abide by the Supreme Court’s ruling invalidating the original deadline for the central bank’s currency policy and extending it to December 31, 2023.
The speaker stated this in response to the Supreme Court’s decision on Friday, which invalidated the federal government’s policy on the redesign of the naira.
Gbajabiamila claimed in a press release on Friday that the Supreme Court’s judgement has once again demonstrated its status as the highest court of justice in the nation.
He claimed that the Supreme Court’s ruling supported the House’s criticism of the policy’s implementation as it violated the statute creating the CBN.
He said the CBN “Must respect the apex court’s judgement and act quickly to give it full effect. This is necessary to reverse some of the damage done to our economy and prevent the continued suffering of the Nigerian people.”
He added that, “It has always been the position of the House of Representatives that, despite the noble intentions behind the currency swap policy, the design and implementation of the policy have been fatally flawed and contradictory to the ends of law and public policy.
“The decision of the Supreme Court suspending the currency swap policy introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and extending the implementation deadline to December 31, 2023, validates the position of the House in its entirety.”
Describing the implementation of the policy as “remarkably haphazard,” Gbajabiamila stated that it fell way short of international standards.
He stressed that “It deviated from the prior practice of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) without providing any benefits to the Nigerian people or the economy of Nigeria, both of which have suffered significant harm as a result.”
Gbajabiamila further commended the governors of Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara as well as their other colleagues, for approaching the apex court to make a decision on the matter, describing their action as “the right thing to do.”
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