KANO State House of Assembly has resolved to amend the Kano State Emirs (Appointment and Deposition) Law.
The House made the resolution following a motion by the Majority Leader and member representing Dala constituency, Hussien Dala, during the plenary on Tuesday, May 21.
The decision is amidst the call for the return of the deposed 14th Emir of Kano, Muhammad Sanusi.
On March 9, 2020, the former Kano governor, Abdullahi Ganduje deposed Sanusi, who was appointed during the tenure of former Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, following his removal from the position of Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in April 2014.
Ganduje deposed him for alleged insubordination and banished him from the state.
The deposed emir moved to Awe in Nasarawa State, where he lived in a private home until March 13 when he obtained an interim court order for his release from house arrest.
According to Ganduje, Sanusi’s appointment was made out of spite towards Jonathan, stressing that he removed Sanusi from his position in order to protect the system and traditional institutions from being abused.
Additionally, he criticised Sanusi for publicly speaking out about missing funds in Jonathan’s government over which many Nigerians believe the former President removed him from office and suggested that he should have discussed the matter privately with the former President.
Meanwhile, before Sanusi was removed as the Emir of Kano, Ganduje, in 2019, approved a bill for the creation of four new emirates for Gaya, Rano, Karaye and Bichi, all of which were previously under the Kano Emirate Council.
But following the emergence of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf of New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), both Yusuf and his political godfather Rabiu Kwankwaso, had hinted that the removal of Sanusi and the new law would be reviewed.
“Kwankwaso said in a viral video: “As elders, we will continue to advise them to do the right thing. We tried not to intervene in the issue of bringing or removing any Emir, but now, an opportunity has come.
“Those who were given this opportunity will sit down and see to the issues. They will look at what they are expected to do. Besides the Emir, even the emirate has been divided into five places. All these need to be studied. Usually, a leader inherits good, bad and issues that are hard to reconcile.
“Any of you that visits the headquarters of these new emirates will believe me that we have brought development to these places. These emirates were created for unity, progress, history, and also for the recovery of the reputation of the traditional institutions. We created them to honour the people of these regions.”
However, in an apparent reaction to Kwankwaso’s statement in May 2023, Ganduje, while speaking at the Workers’ Day celebration, reassured residents of the state that the new emirates will be protected.
“I want to assure you that these emirates are permanent, they have come to stay. And anybody that will destroy them, God Almighty will not bring him to Kano State. We assure you that these emirates were created because of you, because of your progress,” Ganduje had said.
Usman Mustapha is a solution journalist with International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: [email protected]. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M