The Supreme Court of Nigeria has ruled that the redesign of the country's naira currency by the central bank is invalid and plans to stop accepting the old bills had to be postponed.

Last October, the government had announced the plan to release new banknotes. It gave citizens until February 10 to swap out their old currency.

However, Justice Emmanuel Agim said, the proper procedures were not followed and too few new notes were released.

"The position of the president as [an] agent of the federation imposed a duty of consultation on him. Not to do so makes him a dictator," Agim said of outgoing President Muhammdu Buhari.

The central bank had argued that the redesign would tamper inflation, but 16 states soon brought legal challenges to the plan, saying they had not been given enough time to make the change.

This caused chaotic scenes as people did not have enough money to pay for necessities. Many slept outside banks, hoping to be first in line to get cash the next morning. It also wreacked havoc on small businesses.

The Supreme Court has ruled that the old notes must be considered legal tender until at least the end of 2023.

Mass protests

According to national statistics, some 36% of Nigerians do not use bank accounts, and are feeling the push to move to a cashless society the hardest. Particularly in rural areas, where some 62% of adults live too far away from financial institutions to make use of them.

The dire situation created by the cash scarcity caused huge protests across Nigeria ahead of the country's national election on February 25, which was won by ruling party candidate Bola Tinubu.

es/rc (AFP, Reuters)