2. I address you today, in my last assignment as a democratically elected President of our great and well-endowed nation, with a deep sense of gratitude to God, a great deal of appreciation to the Nigerian people, and a modest sense of fulfillment. 

3. Today we mark and celebrate another peaceful transition of power from one elected government to another in our steady march to improve and sustain Nigeria’s democracy. 

4. This year we witnessed the most keenly contested Presidential Elections since the first Republic and this demonstrates that our democracy is getting better and more entrenched with each election. 

5. We must as a nation improve and sustain gains we make in the electoral process, on an incremental basis for Nigeria to take its rightful place among Nations. 

6. Our democracy provides for, allows and encourages seeking redress for perceived injustices, enabling some candidates and political parties that did not agree with the results to go to court. 

7. Irrespective of the outcome of the various cases, I urge all parties involved to accept the decision of our courts and join hands to build a better Nigeria. 

8. I salute the doggedness and resilience of all the Presidential Candidates and their political parties for believing in our judicial system by taking their grievances with the election results to court. 

9. In the course of the campaigns, we had argued and disagreed on how to make Nigeria better but we never disagreed or had any doubts that Nigeria has to be better. 

10. As your President, I call on all of us to bring to bear the strength of our individualism, the power of our unity, the convictions of our beliefs to make Nigeria work better and together with one spirit and one purpose. 

11. To my brother, friend and fellow worker in the political terrain for the past ten years – Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu -, I congratulate you on the realisation of your dream, which was propelled by a burning passion to put Nigeria amongst the leading nations of the world.  

12. You have indeed worked for this day and God has crowned your efforts. I have no doubt that your passion for excellence, reliance on competence, fairness in relationships, commitment to equity, loyalty to the country and desire for Nigeria to be globally relevant would come through for you, under God’s guidance, as you lead our country to levels higher that I am leaving.   

13. You are the best candidate among all the contestants and Nigerians have chosen well. 

14. The last eight years have been an exciting experience in my desire and commitment to see a Nigeria in which public goods and services are available, and accessible within a united, peaceful and secure nation. 

15. Fellow Nigerians, on the strength of your overwhelming support for me and my political party, I started this journey with a great deal of promise and expectation from you. I never intended to be just politically correct but to do the correct things that will make meaningful impact on the lives of the common Nigerian. 

16. This high expectation was not misplaced because, like the ordinary Nigerian, I had grown tired of watching the country progressively moving away from the path of correctness. 

17. To ensure that our democracy remains resilient and our elected representatives remain accountable to the people, I am leaving behind an electoral process which guarantees that votes count, results are credible, elections are fair and transparent and the influence of money in politics reduced to the barest minimum. And Nigerians can elect leaders of their choice. 

18. We are already seeing the outcome of this process as it provided an even playing field where persons without any political God-Father or access to money defeated other well-resourced candidates. 

19. The Nigerian economy has become more resilient due to the various strategies put in place to ensure that our economy remained afloat during cases of global economic downturns. 

20. You would all recall the supply chain disruptions and economic downturn that the world witnessed between 2020 and 2022 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The deftness of our response to the pandemic still remains a global best practice. 

21. Furthermore, we increased the ability of the poor and rural Nigerians to earn a living, provided more food for millions in our villages and gave our women opportunities to earn a living. 

22. Young men and women in urban centres were also supported to put their skills into productive use. Our administration also provided an enabling environment for the private sector to engage in businesses for which their return on investments is guaranteed. 

23. The private sector proved a strong partner in our drive to build a resilient and sustainable economy as evidenced by the growing number of turn-key projects in various sectors of the economy. 

24. In the course of revamping the economy, we made some difficult choices, most of which yielded the desired results. Some of the measures led to temporary pain and suffering for which I sincerely apologised to my fellow countrymen, but the measures were taken for the over-all good of the country. 

25. Mindful of the need to ensure adequate infrastructure to drive economic growth, we completed age-long projects and processes notably amongst which are the Petroleum Industry Act, completion of some power projects, completion of the second Niger bridge and various important roads linking cities and states. 

26. Our battle to ensure that all Nigerians live in a safe and secure environment has achieved considerable results. As I complete my term in office, we have been able to reduce the incidences of banditry, terrorism, armed robbery and other criminal activities considerably. 

27. To sustain the gains made so far, I call on all Nigerians to be more vigilant and support the security agencies by ensuring that our values defined by being your brothers’ keeper govern our actions. 

28. Up-till now, I still grieve for our children still in captivity, mourn with parents, friends and relatives of all those that lost loved ones in the days of the senseless brigandage and carnage. For all those under unlawful captivity our Security Agencies are working round the clock to secure their release unharmed. 

29. Fellow Nigerians, you know how dear the desire in my heart is, to rid the country of corrupt practices that had consistently diminished our efforts to be a great country. 

30. I did pursue this commitment relentlessly, in spite of the expected push back. I am happy that considerable progress had been made in repatriating huge sums of money back to the country and also taken over properties illegally acquired from our common wealth. 

31. To improve service delivery, we began the implementation of a number of reforms aimed at producing an Efficient, Productive, Incorruptible and Citizen-oriented (EPIC) Federal Civil Service and the results are beginning to show. 

32. On the international scene, Nigeria’s influence continues to grow as exemplified by notable Nigerians occupying headship and leadership positions in renowned global bodies. 

33. Our democracy is built on and continues to thrive on the principles of separation of powers. The leadership and members of the National Assembly deserve my appreciation for their patriotism which did not detract from their roles as a check to the executive arm.

34. I also want to use this opportunity to express my appreciation to a good number of Nigerians who provided their support and encouragement to help me navigate the exciting journey in moving Nigeria forward. 

35. I cannot and will not forget the millions who prayed for me during my illness in my first term of office. I am constantly praying for you and for Nigeria to thrive in peace.

“This is the gallery where you will be meeting members of the press,” Buhari told Tinubu as both men emerged from the waiting room of the Aso Chambers.  This came barely 24 hours after the President conferred upon Tinubu the highest national honour of Grand Commander of the Federal Republic and Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger on Vice President-elect, Kashim Shettima, at the State House Banquet Hall.

On Thursday, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo took Shettima on a tour of the VP wing of the State House. Both leaders exchanged documents ahead of the official handover of power on Monday, May 29, 2023.  However, the President-elect prayed for good health to lead the country.

May God help me to carry the burden, to face the challenge, and keep me in good health to fulfill the dream and aspiration of millions of our people,” Tinubu said after observing the Friday Jumaat prayers at the Presidential Villa mosque and touring the premises with President Buhari

Tinubu said his goal was to, amongst other things, “kill corruption”.

“That is a covenant that you have to really pursue. Other than that, why are you in politics? My own is not identity politics. It’s not hunger or poverty politics. I have followed a man who has integrity, character, and courage to say ‘Nigerians we need to change and change we have to. Change our mindset, kill corruption in our society,” he added.

Tinubu urged Nigerians to support the All Progressives Congress’s change agenda. He also spoke on his ‘Renewed Hope’ agenda to revamp the economy, tackle security and poverty reduction, and what generally Nigerians should expect of him.

The move is to allow for maintenance works on the residence in preparation for its next occupant, President-elect Bola Tinubu.

most of Buhari’s aides have also been moving their personal belongings out of the seat of power in order to create room for Tinubu’s personal aides and key Presidency officials.

On the nature of renovations in the main residence, a senior State House source said that the 32-year-old edifice was being coated with white paint, while some of its sections were being cleaned and fumigated.

However, the renovation, which largely entails finishing and fittings, will not include the provision of new sets of furniture as the incoming President will determine whether to change the existing ones or not.

“You know that most of the structure is white. So, the renovation will involve repainting of the stained sections and replacing fittings that have gone weak or bad. The furniture may not be changed. But that will depend on the new President,” the source said.

According to a two-minute video clip earlier published on her Instagram handle, the First Lady, Aisha Buhari, revealed that the Glass House had since been the new residence of the first family.

Aisha was seen showing the incoming First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, around the State House official residence, adding that the Glass House should remain in use as the transition base for outgoing presidents and their spouses.

She said, “I have taken the incoming First Lady, Senator Remi Tinubu, around. She has seen the main house; we are now at the popular Glass House. The Glass House is a transitional home for outgoing presidents.

“I’m advising that the Glass House should maintain its tradition of being a transition home for outgoing presidents. As I am talking to you now, I am residing here with my husband.

“Only two of us here, I think it should remain so as a norm of the institution and of the house.”

State House Management had begun renovating and refurbishing sections of the Presidential Villa.

The concrete perimeter fence encompassing the President’s office, official residence, the Council Chamber, press gallery, as well as other administrative offices were being overlaid with new white and green paints.

There was a delivery of a new set of furniture to the green room adjoining the Council Chamber. Months earlier, the management had carried out a routine upgrade of card readers and installed barricades in areas, which were once freeways.

Meanwhile, the Villa Clinic located at the administrative section of the State House has been relocated to the N21bn VIP wing of the State House Clinic, now a medical centre.

President Buhari is expected to give his final assent for disbursement any moment from now.

If the proposal sails through, it means the increase will be coming about two months to the June date proposed for the removal of petrol subsidy.

Officials of the Federal Government said  that the fresh pay increase, tagged consequential allowance, would lead to a 40 per cent rise in the current pay of government workers.

the Director of Press and Public Relations, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Olajide Oshundun, revealed that the Federal Government might begin payment of the 40 per cent pay rise by the end of April this year, adding that the three months arrears of January, February and March would be paid at a later date.

Oshundun, however, said he could not confirm if the proposal by the government committee saddled with the task had been finally approved by the President.

He said, “Consequential allowance Salaries will be increased by 40 per cent for civil servants from level 1 to level 17.

“What we receive now is called consolidated public service salary structure, it is the combination of basic and all allowances. So, the increase will be 40 per cent of what a public servant is earning now.

“They will start paying from the end of this month (April) and the arrears of January, February and March will be paid later. The salary increase is effective from January 2023. That is the proposal submitted by the committee set up to look into salary adjustment for civil servants, but am not sure if the President has signed it yet.”

Last month, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige disclosed that the Federal Government had approved a pay raise for civil servants in the country.

He added that the pay rise had been included in the 2023 budget, noting that it would take effect from January 1, 2023.

Ngige described the pay raise as a peculiar allowance for civil servants in view of the current economic reality and it is meant to help government workers to cushion the effects of rising inflation, rising cost of living, hikes in transportation fare, housing and electricity tariffs.

Nigeria’s headline inflation increased to 22.04 per cent year-on-year in March, the highest rate since September 2005.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics data, the latest rise in inflation rate is the third consecutive increase this year, increasing by 0.13 per cent points when compared to the February 2023 headline inflation rate.

The NBS added that the cost of food and beverages contributed significantly to overall inflation.

“The contributions of items on the divisional level to the increase in the headline index are food and non-alcoholic beverages (11.42 per cent); housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuel (3.69 per cent); clothing and footwear (1.69 per cent); transport (1.43 per cent); furnishings, household equipment and maintenance (1.11 per cent); education (0.87 per cent); health (0.66 per cent); miscellaneous goods and services (0.37 per cent); restaurant and hotels (0.27 per cent); alcoholic beverage, tobacco and kola (0.24 per cent); recreation and culture (0.15 per cent) and communication (0.15 per cent),” the NBS report added.

However, leaders of the organised labour on Monday described the proposed pay rise as a meagre allowance that would not be equivalent to a 40 per cent increase in workers’ salaries.

Reacting in a telephone interview, the National Vice President of the Trade Union Congress, Tommy Etim, confirmed the moves by the government to increase “allowances and not salaries” as publicly insinuated.

According to him, the allowance is an increased arising from the peculiar circumstances surrounding the removal of the fuel subsidy and inflation. He, however, stressed that civil servants were yet to receive the payment.

He said, “I am aware of the moves by the government and the payment is to start from January.  The new payment is not an increase in workers’ salaries. It is a peculiar allowance and not an increase in salary, so we don’t misinform the public. it is just an increase in basic salary and not across board. Other components are not touched so that the market woman will not think the government has increased salary.  It is an allowance because of the peculiar circumstances surrounding the removal of fuel subsidy and inflation. An allowance is not a salary. No civil servant has received so I cannot speak authoritatively until it hits everyone’s bank account.”

Etim, who is also the president of the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria, further charged the government to consider increment of other allowances such as rent and transportation.

“We would also admire it if other allowances are looked into, especially housing and transport. The present socioeconomic indices don’t favour transportation for civil servants with some spending their whole salary just on transportation, not to talk of rent and other bills. The government should also look at that aspect as it is very important,” he added.

However, the Nigerian Labour Congress denied knowledge of the proposed increment noting that “We are only hearing it as rumours.”

The National Treasurer, NLC, Hakeem Ambali, said the union had yet to be involved in any form of discussion concerning the issue.

He said, “For us, we are only hear it as rumours because there are procedures for negotiating fringe benefits and workers’ entitlement which is through collective bargaining. It is a tripartite thing that would have to be negotiated. But with what we are seeing, it still looks like a rumour, we are still waiting that the Federal Government will invite the necessary arm of labour where negotiation will be done and we would agree.

“Any increment not based on available and empirical data would not be agreeable to labour. We must sit down to look at the inflationary and economic trends to arrive at a logical conclusion. So the first step is to go back to the negotiating table.”

When asked about the union’s next action if the government went ahead with the proposed plan, he simply said, “We would continue in our push, even in our acceptance speech we made it clear that labour will negotiate with the Federal Government on minimum wage increment, so any allowance that doesn’t take cognisance of the economic reality of the day is not acceptable to labour.”

Speaking on Sunday during a visit to him in Makkah, Saudi Arabia, by the transitional president of Chad, General Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno, Buhari described the fight between the Rapid Support Forces as unwelcome.

In a statement issued by the presidential spokesperson, Mallam Garba Shehu, Buhari also described the fighting that claimed tens of lives as unfortunate.

The two leaders reviewed the unfortunate situation and called on all neighbouring countries and the international community to prevail on the warring sides to stop fighting and negotiate.

Buhari acknowledged that the situation in Sudan is unfortunate, adding that Sudan deserved peace after all it had gone through.

Buhari commended the Chadian leader for his “efforts to see a calming down, and for them to live peacefully. But you have to keep trying.”

Deby-Itno told Buhari that the situation in Sudan has become worrisome.

Unfortunately, if not arrested, it will have serious repercussions on neighbouring countries,” Deby-Itno said, according to Channels TV.

As for the steps his country took in response to the crisis, Deby-Itno said, “We have closed our borders to Sudan and reinforced our security.

“I have spoken to the leaders of both factions. If everyone tries, it will calm down the situation. African leaders, especially the elders (President Buhari), Macky Sall (Senegal) and AU Chairperson Azali Assoumani (Comoros) need to step in. For two days, they have been killing themselves.”

The Chadian leader wished Buhari a successful Umrah and all the best as he prepared to leave office.

The Special Adviser to the CCB Chairman on General Duties, Dr Mustapha Musa, said that the necessary arrangements had been made for the issuance of the assets forms to the outgoing officials and their successors.

Also, the outgoing presidential aides, 28 state governors and their cabinet members, National Assembly and state assembly members and local government chairmen will equally obtain the assets declaration forms from the Code of Conduct Bureau and submit the same to the CCB in line with the 1999 constitution.

This complies with the provision of the constitution which stipulates that all public officers shall declare their assets and liabilities on the assumption of office and at the end of their tenure of office.

However, the president-elect, Bola Tinubu, the vice president-elect, Kashim Shettima and 28 incoming governors and their cabinet members as well as the state assembly members have three months to submit their assets forms to the CCB.

They are also required to state all properties and assets acquired within or outside the country with the value of the said assets in the currency of the country where the property is situated.

The CCB chairman’s aide explained that the concerned officials were required to obtain the forms from the CCB office and declare all their assets, including money, landed property, vehicles, shares, bonds and others and the sources of the assets.

Musa stated, “They (officials) are expected to declare all their assets at the point of exit, at the point of leaving office. That’s what the law says. They will submit the forms when leaving the office, you cannot submit assets declaration forms while in office.

‘’So, it is at the point of entrance and point of exit. That is what the constitution says, that is what the Code of Conduct Bureau Act says under section 15. The same thing applies to those who are about to come into government but they have three months to declare.’’

The SA disclosed that the assets declaration forms were available online, adding that the bureau would soon digitalise the declaration process.

“The officials are expected to get the forms from the bureau and in fact, they can even go online. We cannot stop issuing the forms because they are online but very soon, we will stop the hard copy and ask them to make their declaration online,’’ Musa noted.

When asked if the outgoing officials have been coming for the forms, he said, “It depends on the mindset but because the law says at the point of exit, so if they pick it now, they cannot submit it until they are about to leave the office. They still have two months to go, so even if they fill out the forms now, they cannot give them to us.’’

On the prosecution of defaulters, the official asserted that many ex-governors, former ministers and other officials were facing trial for under-declaring their assets after leaving office.

He added, “We are prosecuting and we are securing convictions. We prosecute in thousands. We have hundreds of cases before the tribunal. We prosecute daily. The Code of Conduct Bureau is the only body empowered by the constitution to prosecute cases of breaches of the code of conduct for public officers.

“At the tribunal, it is only the judiciary body that has the power to prosecute public officers. So, the tribunal is always our hope. I cannot give you the figure but there are many including all erring public officials.’’

Musa stated that the CCB has been enlightening public officials on the imperative of complying with the law, stressing that the CCB was focused on ensuring compliance rather than prosecution.

“What we do majorly is to see that public officers keep to the code of conduct of public officers. We enlighten public officers where we target local, government, state government and MDAs. We are targeting them for compliance, not for prosecution. However, the power to prosecute is there. The tribunal is there,’’ he said.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a CCB official disclosed that the issuance of the forms would commence before the middle of April or early May.

He added, “Because of difficulty in tracking those who might disappear after leaving office, we do start the issuance of form CCB1 before the expiration of the term of office. We will start issuing forms this month for the incoming (officials) who could fill and return completed assets declaration forms before they are sworn in. The process will most likely commence middle of this month or early May.’’

According to the guidelines published on the CCB website, failure to declare the assets may result in removal from office; vacation of the official seat in any legislative house, as the case may be; imposition of fine; disqualification from membership of a legislative house and from holding of any public office for a period not exceeding 10 years and seizure and forfeiture of any property acquired in abuse or corruption of office.

‘’The law states that the sanctions mentioned above shall be without prejudice to the penalties that may be imposed by any law where the conduct is also a criminal offence,’’ the statement said.

Ngige made this known on Wednesday night when he featured on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme.

The minister said the salary increment became important in view of the current economic reality of the country, however adding that President Buhari is yet to approve the percentage used for the increment.

This is as he noted that the pay rise was already included in the 2023 budget and would take effect from January 1, 2023.

“The Federal Government is looking at giving people in the public service a pay raise to take care of the increased cost of living.

“In the Presidential Committee on Salaries, we have done something for the civil servants for those who are on Consolidated Public Service Salary Structure and some corporations, MDAs that are on that CONPSS. CONPSS is the salary scale for civil servants.

“We put a percentage for the President to approve, we have approved it at our own committee level. We said it should take effect from January 1, 2023.”

According to the information from the Office of the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ahmed Wase, who is the co-chairman of the committee, the bills assented to by the President included those devolving powers from the Federal Government to the states as some items were moved from the Exclusive Legislative List to the Concurrent List in the Constitution.

Many lawyers and analysts have argued for years that the exclusive legislative list, comprising matters which only the Federal Government could legislate on, was too heavy and that it needed to devolve power to the states.

The power devolution bills that passed legislative requirements include those on power, railway, airports and prisons as well as biometric and criminal records. While the President signed the bills seeking to grant state legislature and judiciary autonomy, majority of the state Houses of Assembly opposed independence for local governments.

The National Assembly in January transmitted 35 Constitution Alteration Bills passed by the state House of Assembly, out of the 44 bills sent to the states.

To amend a clause in the constitution (two-thirds or four-fifth) majority of each of the Senate and the House need to approve the amendment after which it will be transmitted to the state Houses of Assembly, where two-thirds or 24 out of the 36 of them have to concur.

Out of the 36 states, 27 Houses of Assembly – Abia, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Imo, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kogi, Lagos, Nasarawa, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun Rivers and Yobe – forwarded their resolutions on the bills.

The House had urged Houses of Assembly in Gombe, Jigawa, Kebbi, Kwara, Oyo, Plateau, Sokoto, Taraba and Zamfara states “that are yet to forward their resolution on the bills to do so in fulfillment of their constitutionally imposed legislative obligation to the constitution amendment process.”

On Friday, however, a statement from the deputy speaker’s office quoted Wase as commending the President for assenting to “some momentous legislations.”

According to Wase, the legislation was fragmented into 16 bills. They are, “Fifth Alteration (1) The bill seeks to alter the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to change the names of Afikpo North and Afikpo South Local Government Areas; and for related matters.

“(2) to change the name of Kunchi Local Government Area; and for related matters; (3) to change the names of Egbado North and Egbado South Local Government Areas; and for related matters; (4) to correct the name of Atigbo Local Government Area; and for related matters; (5) to correct the name of Obia/Akpor Local Government Area; and for related matters.

“(6) The bill seeks to alter the constitution to provide for the financial independence of state Houses of Assembly and state Judiciary; and for related matters; (8) to regulate the first session and inauguration of members-elect of the National and State Houses of Assembly; and for related matters; (9) to delete the reference to the provisions of the Criminal Code, Penal Code, Criminal Procedure Act, Criminal Procedure Code or Evidence Act; and for related matters.”

Others are, “(10) to exclude the period of intervening events in the computation of time for determining pre-election petitions, election petitions and appeals; and for related matters; (12) to provide for the post call qualification of the Secretary of the National Judicial Council; and for related matters; (15) to delete the item ‘prisons’ in the Exclusive Legislative List and redesignate it as ‘Correctional Services’ in the Concurrent Legislative List; and for related matters; (16) to move the item ‘railways’ from the Exclusive Legislative List to the Concurrent Legislative List; and for related matters.

“(17) The bill seeks to alter the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to allow states generate, transmit and distribute electricity in areas covered by the national grid; and for related matters; (23) to require the President and Governors to submit the names of persons nominated as ministers or commissioners within 60 days of taking the oath of office for confirmation by the Senate or state House of Assembly; and for related matters; (32) to correct the error in the definition of the boundary of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; and for related matters.

“(34) The bill seeks to alter the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to require the government to direct its policy towards ensuring right to food and food security in Nigeria; and for related matters.”

Essentially, the Fifth Alteration Bills No. 6, 7, 16, and 17 deal with devolution of power, promoting true federalism and strengthening state Houses of Assembly and judiciary. The deputy speaker congratulated members of the ninth Assembly for working “tirelessly” to ensure the passage of what he called the legacy legislation

The president made this known on Thursday morning during an address to Nigerians were he also apologised to Nigerians over the difficulties experienced in accessing the scarce new naira notes.

He however said that the old N200 note will be legal tender for the next 60 days, till April 10, 2022

The president said, “Let me re-assure Nigerians, that strengthening our economy, enhancing security and blockage of leakages associated with illicit financial flows remain top priority of our administration. And I shall remain committed to my oath of protecting and advancing the interest of Nigerians and the nation, at all times.

“In the last quarter of 2022, I authorised the Central Bank of Nigeria to redesign the N200, N500, and N1000 Nigerian banknotes.For a smooth transition, I similarly approved that the redesigned banknotes should circulate concurrently with the old bank notes, till 31 January 2023, before the old notes, cease to be legal tender.

“During the extended phase of the deadline for currency swap, (from Jnuary 31 till February 10) I listened to invaluable pieces of advice from well meaning citizens and institutions across the nation.

“I similarly consulted widely with representatives of the State Governors as well as the Council of State. Above all, as an administration that respects the rule of law, I have also noted that the subject matter is before the courts of our land and some pronouncements have been made. To further ease the supply pressures particularly to our citizens, I have given approval to the CBN that the old N200 bank notes be released back into circulation and that it should also be allowed to circulate as legal tender with the new N200, N500, and N1000 banknotes for 60 days from February 10, 2023 to April 10 2023 when the old N200 notes ceases to be legal tender.”

The President made this known on Thursday morning during an address to Nigerians.

He also apologised to Nigerians over the difficulties experienced in accessing the scarce new naira notes.

He said, “During the extended phase of the deadline for currency swap, I listened to invaluable pieces of advice from well meaning citizens and institutions across the nation.

“I similarly consulted widely with representatives of the State Governors as well as the Council of State. Above all, as an administration that respects the rule of law, I have also noted that the subject matter is before the courts of our land and some pronouncements have been made.

“To further ease the supply pressures particularly to our citizens, I have given approval to the CBN that the old N200 bank notes be released back into circulation and that it should also be allowed to circulate as legal tender with the new N200, N500, and N1000 banknotes for 60 days from February 10, 2023 to April 10 2023 when the old N200 notes ceases to be legal tender.”