Court Dismisses Suit Challenging Arabic Inscriptions On Naira Notes

Justice Yellim Bogoro of the Federal High Court in Lagos, on Tuesday, dismissed a suit filed by a lawyer, Malcolm Omirhobo, challenging the inclusion of Arabic inscriptions on Naira, the Nigerian currency.

Justice Bogoro, while delivering judgment in the suit, held that Omirhobo failed to provide sufficient evidence to convince her that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) acted in bad faith in designing, issuing, printing, and distributing the naira notes with Arabic inscriptions.

The judge, however, agreed with the plaintiff that Nigeria is a secular state and as such no religion is superior to the other.

The court also noted that Nigeria is a multi-ethnic and religious country and that no ethnic group or religion is superior to the other.

The lawyer had filed the suit in 2020 arguing that having Arabic inscriptions on the naira notes portrays Nigeria as an Islamic state, contrary to the constitutional status of a secular state.

Omirhobo had urged the court to restrain the CBN from “further approving, printing and issuing naira notes with Arabic inscriptions, bearing in mind that Nigeria is a secular state.”

While claiming that he does not know what the Arabic inscriptions mean, he asked the court to order the CBN to replace the Arabic inscriptions with either English language, which is the country’s official language, or any of Nigeria’s three main indigenous languages – Hausa, Yoruba or Igbo.

The Plaintiff further submitted that with the Arabic inscriptions on the naira note, the CBN has been violating Sections 10 and 55 of the Nigerian Constitution, which make the country a secular state.

However, in a counter-affidavit filed in opposition to the suit, the CBN insisted that contrary to Omirhobo’s claim, “the Ajami inscriptions on some of the country’s currencies do not connote any religious statements or Arabian alignment.”

In the affidavit deposed to by one Abiola Lawal, the apex bank stated that the inscriptions on the country’s currencies do not and at no time have they threatened the secular statehood of the nation nor have they violated the Constitution of Nigeria, as every design and inscription was finalised with the approval of the relevant government bodies.

Also, in opposition to the suit, the Registered Trustees of Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) had claimed that Omirhobo’s arguments were motivated by “religious bigotry, religious intolerance and outright hatred for Islam.”

MURIC also submitted that there was nowhere in the constitution where it was stated that Nigeria is a secular state.

The organisation also argued that Arabic is just a language and not synonymous with Islam, saying the Bible, which is the Christian holy book, is printed in the Arabic language in Israel, Egypt, Palestine, Lybia, Syria and other countries.

It further stated that if the sign of the cross, synonymous with Christianity, could be used on government-owned hospitals and ambulances, insisting that there was no reason why Arabic should not be permitted on naira notes.