The apex body of all civil society groups in Nigeria, the Civil Society Central Coordinating Council (CSCCC) has rejected the Exparte Order made by the Supreme Court of Nigeria on Wednesday, restraining the Central Bank Of Nigeria (CBN) and President Muhammadu Buhari from terminating the use of the old N200, N500 and N1000 banknotes on February 10, 2023.
The group, therefore, called on President Buhari to immediately consider issuing Executive Orders to bring to effect the Naira swap policy’s terminal date as the Supreme Court order did not restrain the exercise of the constitutional powers of the President.
The Council further said that its rejection of the Supreme Court order was because it was an attack on credible elections and called on the apex Court not to yield its platform for people it called election riggers to have access to illicit cash to compromise the elections.
The convener of the CSOs, Bar. Obed Okwukwe, at a press briefing in Abuja, called on the apex court to immediately vacate the order as it was capable of derailing the credibility of the 2023 general election and ultimately truncating our most cherished democracy.
“The Supreme Court must redeem its image immediately and show Nigerians that it is not deliberately against free, fair and credible elections bearing in mind some very controversial orders and judgments of the court in the recent past,” he said.
He also claimed that opponents of the currency redesign and cash withdrawal limit policies deadline were pushing for a shift of the February 25 general election date.
According to him, they had credible intelligence that those behind the campaign for shift in the deadline of the new currency redesign and cash withdrawal limit were pushing that the 2023 general election be shifted.
He said: “this evil idea will throw Nigeria into a constitutional crisis and lead to the collapse of constitutional democracy. Now these anarchists realizing they cannot win the general election are now looking for ways to destroy democracy and undermine President Buhari.
“These men who have benefited from President Buhari now want to destabilize and hurt our dear President and our democracy in their selfish bid of running errands for their new godfather in town.
“They have forgotten that without President Buhari some of them would not have legally or illegally made it to office they now occupy, now President Buhari looks small in their eyes and even without Buhari tenure expiring, these ungrateful power elements and betrayal characters are instigating people to destroy President Buhari and our hard won democracy for the sake of their new master.
“What offence has President Buhari committed by saying he wants credible election? Were these people not beneficiaries of credible election in 2015? So why crucify our President who is committed to giving Nigeria enabling environment for free and fair election.
“We wish to state it clearly again, Nigerians will not accept any shift in the 2023 general election date and also any shift in the deadline for the currency redesign policy.
“Let these men use this time they are wasting in attacking President Buhari and his good policy to go and put their billions back to the bank or even let them open the cash warehouses containing those billions in Lagos, Kano, Imo, Zamfara, Kogi and share those billions to poor masses since they are now new lovers of the poor.
“If those who want cash limit removed and new currency redesign policy shifted love us and the suffering poor masses, let them use these few days before the end of the deadline to open their bullion vans and share the money to the poor masses now instead of looking for how to use it during election to corrupt the electoral process,” he added.
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