CBN

SANUSI, CBN AND ARABIC INSCRIPTION ON NAIRA NOTES

ARABIC INSCRIPTION ON THE REDESIGNED NAIRA: MUHAMMADU SANUSI NOT A PAN NIGERIAN

By Chief Malcolm Emokiniovo Omirhobo

After going through the statements credited to the deposed Emir of Kano and former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Muhammadu Sanusi, insisting that the Arabic inscription, will not be removed from the redesigned Naira notes, I came to the one and only irresistible conclusion that the man is a religious bigot and that he is not a pan Nigerian as he touts himself around as.

Without considering the fact that Nigeria is a secular state and that the religion of other Nigerians must be respect at all times and that the Nigerian government must not involve itself in religious matters Sanusi a Khalifa of the Tijaniyya Islamic sect informed his fellow Muslim brothers that he has met with Godwin Emefiele, the governor of the Nigerian Central Bank who confirmed to him that the inscription will remain in the redesigned N100, N200, N500 and N1000 notes by December 2022.

Sanusi went on this assignment because some Islamic scholars alleged a ploy by the Federal Government to remove the Arabic inscription from the redesigned notes. He authoritatively confirm to the Muslim ummah that there are no such plans to remove the Arabic inscription in the redesign Naira notes and appealed to Islamic scholars to please stop acting on unsubstantiated reports.

With all his education and exposure in life, Sanusi cannot feign ignorance to the fact that Arabic language in any form is not a language indigenous to Nigeria neither is it the official language of Nigeria.

If Sanusi who is one of the most educated Nigerian in the North can see the Arabic inscription on the Naira notes from a religious perspective instead from a secular perceptive then he is nothing but a religious bigot.

Nigerians must be wary of Sanusi because he is not a pan Nigerian as he claims. Anytime he is addressing them as a progressive and pan Nigerian they should not take him serious because he speaks from both sides of his mouth . He pretends that he wants the unity of Nigeria whereas he does not.

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N1.26TR NATIONAL THEATRE SUIT: COURT SET OCTOBER 29 FOR PARTIES TO BATTLE

BY EMEKA NWADIOKE

The forthcoming annual vacation of the Federal High Court has stalled speedy hearing of an application in a N1.26 trillion suit brought by Topwideapeas Limited seeking an order of the court to annul concessioning of a part of the controversial National Theatre edifice.

The plaintiff is praying for an interlocutory injunction restraining the defendants from interfering with the plaintiff’s rights as concessionaire of the fallow land adjoining the National Theatre. The substantive motion was earlier set down for hearing on March 10, 2020 but was aborted by the coronavirus crisis.

Among the defendants that were served by substituted means are Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), Minister, Federal Ministry of Tourism, Culture & National Orientation, Attorney-General of the Federation and Central Bank of Nigeria as second to fifth defendants. Other defendants in the suit are National Theatre & The National Troupe of Nigeria Board, Access Bank of Nigeria Plc and its Managing Director, Mr. Herbert Wigwe, as first, sixth and seventh defendants respectively. The case is listed as FHC/L/CS/2392/2019, Topwideapeas Ltd V National Theatre & National Troupe of Nigeria Board & 6 Ors.

Though counsel for the plaintiff, Mr. Matthew Nkap had at the resumed hearing last Wednesday sought an early date to argue the pending application for an interlocutory injunction, Justice Ayokunle Faji stated that his hands were tied by the impending vacation. He adjourned the matter to October 29 to hear all pending applications. Barrister C. Opara represented the 4th Defendant while Mr. Adeniyi Adegbonmire SAN appeared for the 6th and 7th defendants.

The plaintiff had scaled a major hurdle last March when the court ordered that all the court processes should be served on some defendants by substituted means.

After listening to the Lead Counsel for the plaintiff, Mr. Chijioke Okoli SAN argue a motion ex-parte for substituted service on the defendants, the court had ordered the plaintiff to serve the writ of summons and statement of claim on the defendants via DHL courier service and also by publication in a national newspaper.

The court also ordered that hearing notice for an interlocutory injunction to restrain the defendants from interfering with the plaintiff’s rights as concessionaire of the fallow land adjoining the National Theatre should be served on the defendants, while the substantive motion was set down for hearing on March 10, 2020.

The plaintiff is seeking among others a declaration that the plaintiff has a valid and binding contract for the concession of the fallow land surrounding the National Theatre Complex in terms of the updated draft concession agreement between the Federal Republic of Nigeria (represented by the first and third defendants) and the plaintiff, the approval of the Federal Executive Council being a mere formality in the circumstances.

Topwideapeas also seeks a declaration that it is unlawful for the fifth to seventh defendants to purport to truncate and nullify the plaintiff’s right as the concessionaire of the fallow land in and about the National Theatre Complex Iganmu, Lagos, by inducing the breach of the plaintiff’s contract with the first to third defendants or by any other means.

The plaintiff prays the court to declare that it is contrary to public policy and constitutes a misappropriation of scarce public funds for the fifth defendant (CBN) to divert public funds towards any project concerning the National Theatre Complex, Iganmu, Lagos, when the plaintiff and its partners and privies have mobilised local and foreign private investment into developing the complex and surrounding land into a grand mini-city on a scale entirely beyond the legitimate capacity of the fifth defendant.

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