Justice Yellin Bogoro held that Section 53(1) of the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA) authorizes the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to print, design, and issue currency. This section also mandates that bad faith must be established before an action can challenge the act or omission of the Federal Government or the apex court.
The court further ruled that the lawsuit filed by Lagos-based lawyer Malcolm Omirhobo, which contested the Arabic inscriptions on Naira notes, did not prove that the CBN’s powers were used in bad faith. Omirhobo had initiated the lawsuit in January 2020, arguing that Arabic is not one of Nigeria’s four official languages—English, Yoruba, Hausa, and Igbo. He asserted that Arabic is not indigenous to Nigeria and its presence on the country’s currency violates certain constitutional provisions.
In its defense, the CBN filed a preliminary objection, claiming that Omirhobo lacked the locus standi to bring the matter to court. Additionally, the bank submitted a defense. Three other interested parties— the Incorporated Trustees of the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), its Founder Ishaq Akintola, and Kebbi-based legal practitioner Umar Kalgo—joined the suit as defendants.
After hearing all the defendants in May 2024, the court scheduled its judgment for the following day. Justice Bogoro first dismissed the CBN’s preliminary objection, affirming that Omirhobo had the locus standi to initiate the action as a taxpayer. The court also emphasized the importance of encouraging public interest actions.
However, the court concluded that Omirhobo failed to demonstrate that the CBN acted in bad faith, resulting in the dismissal of the suit. In response to the judgment, Omirhobo stated he had requested a Certified True Copy of the judgment and would review it to determine his next steps.
Omirhobo noted that the court acknowledged Nigeria as a secular state where no religion is superior to another. The court also recognized Nigeria as a multi-ethnic and religious country where no ethnic group or religion holds superiority. Omirhobo claimed the court advised that for harmonious coexistence, it might be time for the CBN and the Federal Government to remove the Arabic inscriptions from the N200, N500, and N1000 notes, as they had already done with the N5, N10, N50, and N100 notes.
Reacting to the judgment, MURIC described it as far-reaching, profound, didactic, and monumental. In a statement, Akintola said, “This is a sweet victory. Once again, the Nigerian judiciary has demonstrated courage, intellectual excellence, and jurisprudential exactitude. This judgment is far-reaching, profound, didactic, and monumental. Omirhobo’s approach is not only naĂŻve but also pedestrian and kindergarten. This suit against Arabic on Naira manifests acute desertification of religious tolerance… We have been vindicated.”
Credit: NewspointNigeria