What is in a name they often ask but in Kano State history is repeating itself in a space of about 6 decades.
The dethronement of the Emir of Kano, Muhammad Sanusi II came after series of events captured in this report and similar events in the past.
Perhaps it will not come as a surprise to keen political watchers that Sanusi Lamido sanusi was removed as the 14th Emir of Kano. In the period after the 2019 general elections, relations between the embattled Sanusi and Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje have soured.
This is traceable to alleged involvement of Sanusi in the political plot to scuttle Ganduje’s second term bid. But no one has spoken out openly on this issue but Sanusi had been having interesting times since the election.
First, the once dominant single Emirate in the whole of Kano State was split into four emirates, reducing the areas of influence of the Emir.
The Emir faced several probe panels, both administrative and political on his handling of funds belonging to the Kano Emirate. The Kano State House of Assembly on more than one occasion raised Legislative panels to probe the activities of the Kano Emirate Council under Sanusi.
Sanusi’s response has been resorted to litigations, some of which he won the cat and mouse game between the Emir and the Governor took a twist on monday as the Kano State executive council unanimously approved his dethronement. The council is made up of the Governor, deputy governor and other senior political appointees of the governor including commissioners and special advisers.
The secretary to the Kano State Government, Usman Alhaji traced Sanusi’s removal to acts of insubordination.
Alhaji said Sanusi was guilty of total disrespect to lawful instructions from the governor and other lawful authorities including his persistent refusal to attend official meetings and programmes organised by the government without any justification.
In a manner reminiscent of the decision of the defunct northern regional government which deposed Emir Muhammadu Sanusi in 1963 and banished him to Azare in now Bauchi State, the embattled Sanusi has been banished to Nasarawa State.
Interestingly, the elder Sanusi was deposed on the orders of his distant cousin, late Sir Ahmadu Bello, the then Premier of the Northern region, Sanusi has been replaced by his cousin, Aminu Ado Bayero, as new Emir of Kano whose Father the late Ado Bayero replaced the elder Muhammadu Sanusi the first as Emir of Kano.
It will be recalled that the deposition of the Emir of Kano in 1963 led to strong protests but for now all is calm in Kano.
