Falana Sues CBN, says Floating of Naira ‘illegal’

Human rights lawyer Femi Falana, SAN, is challenging the floating of the naira in court. Falana said this while slamming the Central Bank of Nigeria for the decision to float Nigeria.

Falana said the action is ‘illegal’ and will address the matter in court.

He said this while speaking on  Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Friday; Falana argued that according to the CBN Act, the central bank must set the exchange rate.

“There’s no provision for floating the naira. It’s illegal. You say, ‘Market forces will determine the value of the naira. That is not there in the law.

“I’ve had to sue the Central Bank of Nigeria at the Federal High Court because Section 16 of the Central Bank Act has imposed a duty on the Central Bank to fix and determine the rate of the naira vis-a-vis other currency,” he said.

Floating the Naira means the elimination of a fixed price for foreign exchange trading within the country. This removes the direct intervention of the CBN from the forex market, and this is why Falana is upset.

August 19, 2023