The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has urged the Federal government and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to respect the Supreme Court order of Interim injunction on the deadline for Naira swap.
The National Working Committee (NWC) of the party, after a meeting with governors elected on the platform of the party and its presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu in Abuja on Sunday, maintained the order of the apex court “is still subsisting”.
The meeting also urged President Muhammadu Buhari to urgently intervene and halt the current suffering occasioned by the faulty implementation of the CBN cash policy.
Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara state governments first had taken the Federal government and the CBN to the Supreme Court, seeking an order to suspend the Naira swap directive which was to terminate on February 10, 2023.
Despite the order of the apex court, the Federal government and the CBN insisted on the February 10 deadline, without sufficient new Naira notes in circulation.
The situation has precipitated violent protests in some parts of the country, as the commercial banks have not been able to meet the huge cash demands of the customers.
Addressing journalists on the resolution of the meeting, which lasted for about three hours, the APC National Chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, said the party, Governors and party’s presidential candidate are on the same page.
“I am sure you are quite aware of the fact that a meeting comprising of APC Governors was held today and the leadership of the NWC of our great party was summoned for this afternoon and we had discussions and at the end of the discussions, we have resolved as follows and this resolution is without prejudice whatsoever to the case that is lying at the Supreme Court at this point. This has to do with the issue of currency redesign.
“We note very seriously that the programme and its implementation are causing tremendous difficulties to the people of Nigeria and the national economy.
“That, we urge the Attorney General of the Federation and the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria to respect the Supreme Court order of interim injunction which is still subsisting.
“That the meeting is urging His Excellency, Mr President to intervene in resolving issues that are causing this great difficulty to the economy”.
Chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) Governor Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi also said all the parties at the meeting endorsed the resolution.
He said: “We are on the same page. The APC Governors Forum, the NWC is one party. We are all together.
“The chairman (Abdullahi Adamu) said the Governors and the party are the same and I am very proud about the conduct of our campaigns by our presidential candidate under the able leadership of our party led by Abdullahi Adamu and the DG of the Campaign Council and the governors alongside all our APC candidates across the country who have been doing a tremendous job of mobilizing Nigerians”.
Governors at the meeting were Simon Bako Lalong (Plateau); Abdullahi Sule (Nasarawa); Abubakar Sani Bello (Niger); Nasir El-Rufai (Kaduna) and Yahaya Bello (Kogi).
Others were Mohammed Inuwa Yahaya (Gombe); Mai Mala Buni (Yobe); Bello Matawalle (Zamfara); Biodun Oyebanji (Ekiti); Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Lagos); Atiku Bagudu (Kebbi) and Mohammed Badaru (Jigawa).
Governors Aminu Bello Masari (Katsina) and Hope Uzodinma (Imo) sent their deputies.