The Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered the consolidation of the 16 state governments’ suits against the Federal Government challenging the implementation of the CBN’s cashless policy before hearing the suit.
At the resumed hearing of the suit on Wednesday, the apex court had insisted that it will hear the suit filed by some governors against the naira swap policy but that the various suits must be consolidated into one.
It said it will hear the suit “whether the Federal Government obeyed its previous orders on the matter or not.”
Justice Inyang Okoro said this while responding to an argument by the Lagos State Counsel, Mr Moyosore Onigbanjo (SAN) that the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Malam Abubakar Malami (SAN) should not be allowed to defend the respondents in the suit, accusing FG of violating previous orders of the Supreme Court.
Onigbanjo urged the court should first deal with issue contempt which he said supersedes the issue of jurisdiction Malami raised.
Ruling, Justice Okoro said the court will not allow such argument to stop hearing of the suit.
“You are not a stranger to this country. We don’t want a situation where the judiciary will be a scapegoat. We refuse to be the scapegoat”.
“We are hearing this matter today. We don’t intend to keep this matter longer, whether they obey it or not,” he ruled.
Persecondnews reports that a motion for the consolidation of the various suits was argued by Mr Emmanuel Ukala (SAN), counsel to Rivers State.
He had moved the motion on notice premising the consolidation request on the need for the suit to be heard without any hindrance since the matter bothers on same issue.
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