Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu has sent out warnings to people and residents of the state against rejecting the old Naira notes.
Sanwo-Olu vowed to prosecute those who reject the old naira notes in the state under any guise.
He warned that rejecting the old naira notes was against the ruling of the Supreme Court.
The governor’s warning was contained in a statement issued by the State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso.
He said the Supreme Court’s ruling that both the new and old Naira notes still be in circulation beyond the February 10, 2023 deadline placed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had not changed.
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‘That position has not changed. The state government hereby warns those rejecting the old notes to desist from doing so or face prosecution.
‘It is against the law to reject the old notes as doing so is contrary to the position of the Supreme Court,’ Sanwo-Olu said.
Governors of Kaduna, Zamfara and Kogi, Lagos, Katsina, Lagos, Cross River, Ogun, Ekiti, Ondo, and Sokoto states had dragged the Federal Government and the CBN to the Supreme Court over the time limit for the swap of the naira.
The apex court had given an interim order suspending the February 10 deadline.
On Wednesday, the apex court adjourned the matter.
Meanwhile, the ongoing scarcity of the Naira notes took a dangerous dimension on Wednesday morning as no fewer than three persons lost their lives following violent protests that erupted in parts of Nigeria.
Africa Today News, New York reports that in Benin City, the Edo State capital, angry residents, who could not access their monies in commercial banks, took to the streets in protests that led to loss of lives after security forces fired live bullets and teargas to disperse the unruly crowds.
The body of one of the protesters was deposited in front of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) amid sporadic gunfire and teargas from policemen and soldiers.