El-Rufai insists on old naira, orders MDAs to accept notes

The Government of Governor Nasir El-Rufai has directed its Ministries, Departments and Agencies not to reject old naira notes.

In a statement issued on Sunday by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Communication, Muyiwa Adekeye, the government said old and new naira notes should keep circulating in the state.

The state government said the directive was in line with the subsisting order of the Supreme Court on the naira notes.

“In line with the subsisting order of the Supreme Court, the Kaduna State Government has directed its Ministries, Departments and Agencies to ensure that their collection agents continue to accept payments made in all denominations of the naira, old and new.

“The laws of Kaduna State do not allow personnel of government agencies to be involved in cash collection of revenues.

“The collection agents authorised by state government agencies do offer citizens a route for cash payment, and are expected to comply with the subsisting court order.”

President Muhammadu Buhari had declared that old N500 and N1000 notes were no longer legal tender, but El-Rufai countered him, saying they would remain in circulation in Kaduna until Supreme Court says otherwise.

The Kaduna governor was among the three All Progressives Congress (APC) governors, who filed a suit against the Federal Government and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) over naira redesign.

Nasir El-Rufai, on Thursday, declared that the old N500 and N1,000 notes remain legal tender in the state.

The court had restricted the CBN from effecting a deadline for the old naira, but Buhari later directed that only old N200 notes should be left in circulation until the eve of the governorship election.

(TNT)