Mohammed Shosanya
The Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has ordered that all Ministries, Department, and Agencies (MDAs) and courts to start accepting old N500 and N1,000 notes in the state.
He also urged business owners to also accept the old N500 and N1,000 notes, to ease hardship which arose as a result of the Naira redesign policy introduced by the Federal Government.
Sanwo-Olu,who expressed concerns about the policy’s impact on business and commercial activities, emphasized that there was no reason to reject the old notes, going by the Supreme Court judgement delivered on March 3, 2023.
A statement signed by the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso,quoted the governor as assuring Lagosians that all agencies in the state would not reject the currency whenever they aim to transact business with them.
He said,the Lagos state government has noted the hardship sparked by the Naira redesign policy, which has affected business and commercial activities.
He added:“There is no reason to reject the old notes, going by the Supreme Court judgement delivered on March 3, 2023. The apex court declared that “no reasonable notice was given as required by Section 20(3) of the CBN Act,” noting that the public only became aware of the policy through press remarks, which cannot qualify as a notice to the public.
“The court maintained that the policy has impeded the functions of State governments, pointing out that the directive that stops the use of the old notes is illegal, unconstitutional, null and void.
“Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has, therefore, called on business owners, especially retailers, to accept the old N500 and N1,000 notes – in line with the Supreme Court judgement that the currency remains legal tender until December 31, 2023. It is illegal to reject the notes.
“All agencies of the Lagos State Government are advised not to reject payments made with the old currency by the public”.