‘Stand-Off’ Over Kano Throne Continues As Deposed Emir Bayero Returns To Palace …Ex-VP Atiku, Kano NBA Fume…Gov Yusuf Meets With Emir Sanusi, Security Chiefs Behind Closed Doors

The royal families in Kano have refused to budge in stand-off over who should occupy the throne and be the ‘landlord’ of the Emir of Kano’s palace.

The deposed Emir of Kano,  Alhaji Aminu Ado Bayero,  returned to  Kano on Saturday and this had sparked confusion apparently because it was unexpected.

His aircraft had  touched down  at the Aminu Kano International Airport at  exactly 4:30 am, where he was welcomed  by supporters who chorused  a verse from a surah in the Holy Quran, Surah Al-Fatihah.

‘You (alone) we worship, and you (alone) we ask for help (for each and everything)’.

He later observed  salat al-subhi at the airport before leaving for the mini palace in Nassarawa.

 His ‘unexpected’ return to the state capital  had not only sparked confusion  but had also given birth to a flurry of activity.

The deposed Emir has obviously shown that he is ready to battle it out with those who got him removed and ready to have their decision overruled.

 Residents of Kano were made to face some major tension on Saturday as the two parties locked horns.

While addressing people at the mini palace, Alhaji Bayero  noted that Kano is an important city in the country while submitting that he will abide by whatever the law says.

‘I call on the people to remain law-abiding while awaiting the outcome of the legal process in this tussle.

We call on the authority to do justice in this matter. Kano is a very influential state in Nigeria. Whatever affects Kano affects Nigeria. May peace reign in Kano. We pray for Allah to bless Kano with responsible and just leaders.

Justice is the way to go on every issue. There will be justice. Nobody is above the law. We will accept whatever the law says. I appreciate all the people who have shown concern. As I said, justice will take its course. We will keep on praying for peace in Kano State. May Allah the Almighty protect us’ he said.

Governor Abba Yusuf and the Emir of Kano,  Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi ll  also met with security chiefs in the state behind closed doors and the reenthroned monarch thereafter left for his private residence at the Emir’s Palace.

Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, had earlier  ordered  that Alhaji Aminu Ado Bayero should be arrested.

Director General, Media and Publicity, Government House, Kano, Sanusi Tofa , who  disclosed this in a statement he issued in Kano on Saturday, had accused   Bayero of  creating tension in the state.

‘The governor of Kano state, Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf, has ordered the immediate arrest of the former Emir of Kano, Aminu Ado Bayero, for creating tension in the state.

The former Emir was smuggled into Kano city last night in an attempt to forcefully return to the palace two days after being deposed by the governor’ he said.

 ‘As the Chief Security Officer of the state, His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Kano state, Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf, has directed the Commissioner of Police to arrest the deposed Emir with immediate effect for disturbing public peace and attempting to destroy the relative peace the state enjoys’ the statement added.

It did not however take long before it became apparent that importance would not be attached to the governor’s directive.

 Head of  Kano state Police Command , Mohammed Gumel  ,who was joined by  the   Commander of the 3rd Brigade ,Nigerian Army , Kano ,and officials of other security agencies, told journalists  that security agencies in the state will adhere strictly to the Federal High Court order that all parties involved in the Kano Emirate controversy  should maintain status quo.

‘The police command is expressly obeying the Court Order with SUIT No. FHC/KN/CS/182/2024 Dated 23rd May, 2024 issued by the federal high court sitting in Kano alongside all law enforcement agents in the state.

Therefore, we are calling on members of the public to know that the police in the state is working together with the military and other security agencies to provide the adequate security to everyone, as we are committed to carrying out our statutory duties as provided by the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria’ he said.

 Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar on Saturday evening said the Federal Government should be held responsible if there is a breakdown of law and order in Kano state, submitting that it was wrong for the Federal Government to have allegedly  supported   Alhaji Aminu Ado Bayero to  return to Kano while  calling this  an invitation to anarchy.

‘In performing their constitutional duties of law making, the Kano state House of Assembly (KSHA) passed the amended Kano State Emirate Council (Repeal) Bill 2024 in consonance with the provision of Section 4 of the Constitution 1999 as Amended whereas the Governor of Kano state, Engr. Abba Kabir Yusuf subsequently signed into law the said bill. The law, therefore, repealed the 2019 version, which balkanized the ancient Kano Emirate into five.

The foregoing circumstances happened within the confines of the law and in compliance with the powers conferred on the governor as provided by Section 5(2) of the 1999 Constitution as amended; and also in consultation with the Kingmakers of Kano, reappointed Sanusi Lamido Sanusi (also known as Muhammadu Sanusi II) as the 16th Emir of Kano state and accordingly handed him a letter of appointment.

It is surprising that in the early hours of today, exactly at about 5:30 am the former Emir of Kano, His Majesty Aminu Ado Bayero backed by Federal might made their way into the Nasarawa Palace of the Kano Emirate while the reappointed Emir, Muhammadu Sanusi II was at the Gidan Dabo, which is the main residence of the Emir of Kano.

In this wise, the former Emir could not have made his way into the Nasarawa Palace without the support of the Federal Government having done so with the support of the Army and other security personnel in his company. The deployment of soldiers in extra constitutional matters, such as this, undermines the integrity of the Nigerian military’ Atiku  submitted in a statement  issued by his Media Adviser, Paul Ibe.

The former Vice President   has also cautioned the President Bola Tinubu administration against causing tension in Kano state.

‘We need to remind the Tinubu administration that Kano state is known for peace and harmony spanning thousands of years, and any attempt to destabilize the peace of the Land of Commerce shall be resisted. Recall that when Muhammadu Sanusi II was dethroned on 9th March 2020, Kano forged on in peace without any fracas.

We wish to state unequivocally that if for any reason, law and order breaks down in Kano state, particularly Kano Municipal, the Federal Government should be held responsible as the act of providing security cover to the former Emir, Aminu Ado Bayero to come back to Kano is an invitation to anarchy’ he added.

The Kano Branch of the Nigerian Bar Association, (NBA) in a statement  issued in Kano on Saturday by its chairman, Sagir Gezawa,  has also emphasized the need to adhere to legal and constitutional processes.

The NBA submitted that it is within the constitutional duty of a state House of Assembly to legislate and once such a legislation is passed, it becomes the governor’s role to assent to it.

‘Once the governor  give his assent, it becomes law and must be implemented by state apparatus and enforced by a competent court’ the statement said.

The NBA condemned the  idea of  using soldiers  to enforce court orders, calling this a ‘sad reminder of military dictatorship’. adding that correct procedures for enforcing court orders, include notifying the individual through Form 48 and then Form 49 if they do not comply.

‘This process is part of the Sheriff and Civil Processes Act and the laws of various states’ he said.

 ‘As an association , we therefore call on all state actors, to be mindful of their oaths of office and for the security agencies, their scope of duties so as not to make a mockery of our judicial system.

They should as well be mindful of the fact that their actions may breach the security and peace of Kano State and they shall be held accountable in this life or the next’ the statement added..

Kano state NNPP Chairman ,  Alhaji Hashimu Dungurawa, has also submitted that the governor and members of the house of assembly have done the right thing.

‘As the party chairman, I really congratulate the good people of Kano state,  and the state governor for reinstating the 16th Emir of Kano , Alhaji Sanusi Lamido Sanusi.

He was reenthroned  yesterday by the executive governor of Kano state. I’m very happy with this development and you can see that  people are celebrating all over the state, people are coming to pay homage to the new Emir from all parts of the state.

They have been congratulating him  on receiving reappointment letter  from the Executive Governor of Kano state and I assure  the good people of Kano state that the current administration in the state is doing everything  to  improve the lives of the people and right the wrongs.

And we pray that almighty God will make it possible for the governor to win re-election in 2027.

The party under my leadership would like to assure the governor  that we are going to give him  5 million votes  in 2027 so that he can win the election by  a wide margin’  Alhaji  Hashimu Dungurawa told Team@orientactualmags.com in a telephone interview on Saturday.

Recall that Governor Yusuf had announced the decision to reenthrone Alhaji Lamido Sanusi on Thursday.

‘With the full support of the kingmakers, I have approved the reappointment of Malam Sanusi Lamido’ Governor Abba Yusuf  had gleefully submitted at the Art Chamber of the Government House , Kano at about  5:16 pm on Thursday.

Recall that  Alhaji  Abdulahi  Ganduje, who is currently the APC National Chairman,  had  in his eight years as governor of Kano state did a lot of things that influenced the course of history especially when it comes to chieftaincy matters.

Recall  also that in 2019, the House of Assembly had approved the creation of four additional emirate councils, bringing the number of First-Class Emirs in the state to five.

Apart from creating new emirate councils, Alhaji Muhammadu  Lamido Sanusi, a former governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN,  was also removed as Emir of Kano on   March  9 ,2020 .

Alhaji Aminu Ado Bayero, who was then serving as Emir of Bichi , was appointed as the new Emir of Kano.

The new councils created by the Ganduje administration are  Gaya; Karaye, Rano, Bichi Emirate Councils.

Alhaji Lamido Sanusi had  not  only opposed this  but also instituted a lawsuit against the  state government then headed by  Alhaji  Abdulahi Ganduje and the house of assembly  while  Justice A. T. Badamasi of the state high court had also at an instance given an order restraining the  then governor from creating the now defunct emirate councils.

After scaling 3rd reading, the Kano state house of assembly on Thursday passed the Kano Emirates Council law (repeal bill) 2024 into law.

The new bill which was assented to by Governor Abba Yusuf on the same day,  had invalidated the creation of four new Emirate councils in the state.

Recall that a group, the Yan Dangwalen Jihar Kano (the Kano Electorate), had sent a letter to the Kano state House of Assembly which was dated February 5,  2024, seeking a review of the bill creating the Gaya, Rano, Karaye, and Bichi emirate councils.

They had also demanded that Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi II should be restored to the throne-Team@orientactualmags.com  Do you have any information you wish to share with us? Do you want us to cover your event or programme? Kindly send SMS to 08059100286, 09094171980 or get in touch via orientactualmag@gmail.com.  Thank you