Thirteen of Nigeria’s eighteen political parties announced on Monday that they would withdraw from the 2023 general elections scheduled for February 25 and March 11 if the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) extends the February 10 deadline for swapping the old naira notes. The parties, forming a coalition of chairmen, praised President Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) for the redesign of the ₦200, ₦500 and ₦1,000 banknotes but insisted that the policy must be upheld. They also criticized the governments of Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara states for seeking a Supreme Court injunction to extend the validity of the three old notes.
Kenneth Udeze, National Chairman of the Action Alliance, told reporters, “We hereby announce that at least 13 out of the 18 political parties in Nigeria will not be interested in the 2023 general elections and indeed we shall withdraw our participation from the electoral process if this currency policy is suspended, cancelled, or if the deadline is further shifted.” The CBN had extended the deadline for exchanging the old notes to February 10, 2023, after bowing to public pressure on January 29, two days before the original January 31 deadline.
Meanwhile, the governments of Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara have taken the federal government to the Supreme Court, seeking a restraining order to halt the full implementation of the naira redesign. The three states, represented by their attorney generals and commissioners of justice, are plaintiffs in the suit, while the Attorney‑General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, is the sole respondent. In an ex‑parte motion, the states are urging the court to grant an interim injunction that would prevent the federal government, the CBN, commercial banks or their agents from enforcing the February 10 deadline, after which the old ₦200, ₦500 and ₦1,000 notes would cease to be legal tender.
The CBN announced its redesign plan on 26 October 2022, and President Buhari unveiled the new notes on 23 November 2022, setting a January 31 deadline for the old notes’ validity. The president later assured Nigerians that, within seven days, he would address the difficulties citizens faced in accessing the redesigned currency and resolve the crisis. Despite these assurances, protests have erupted in several cities, with many citizens expressing anger over the hardships endured to obtain the new notes.
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