Ondo State governor, Rotimi Akeredou, has instituted a legal action against the federal government over the limitation on daily cash withdrawals from banks, a policy introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The limitation of daily cash at banks since the introduction of the newly redesigned naira has generated tension nationwide owing to the scarcity of the new notes.
The CBN places maximum withdrawal for individuals and corporate organisations at N500,000 and N5 million, respectively.
On Thursday evening, Akeredolu sued the government to the Supreme Court through an originating summon filed by Ondo attorney general Charles Titiloye.
The governor is asking the apex court to declare that the federal government cannot, by a directive issued through CBN, amend or vary an existing act of the National Assembly, particularly section 2 of the Money Laundering Act, which relates specifically to limitations on cash withdrawals for individuals and corporate organisations to N5 million and N10 million, respectively.
He is also demanding that the Supreme Court decide whether the guidelines issued by the central government on maximum daily cash withdrawal and the hardship caused by the implementation of the policy were not in conflict with the provision of section 2 of the Money Laundering Act, sections 20, 39 and 42 of the CBN Act.
Mr Akeredolu also contended that the guideline on daily maximum cash withdrawal made by the national government was an infraction on the legal rights of the Ondo government and its citizens “to access funds for execution of developmental projects, small credit facilities to petty traders (who have no account in banks) and highly detrimental to daily commercial activities in the state.”
The Ondo government has also filed a separate application before the Supreme Court seeking to join the suit instituted by Zamfara, Kaduna, and Kogi on the time frame within which people and government can swap the old N200, N500 and N1,000 for the new banknotes.