Anxiety has enveloped the city of Kano over a statement by former governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso that the incoming government of Abba Kabir Yusuf will revisit the deposition of former Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II
REPORTERS AT LARGE gathered that those troubled by the remarks are sympathisers of the present structure of the state’s monarchy. Many took the statement very seriously, given Kwankwaso’s influence over the governor-elect and the cordial relationship between the deposed Emir and the incoming governor.
The Daily Sun reports that the issue formed the focal point of discussions in many parts of the state yesterday. Many discussants took sides with the deposed Emir or with the present emirs of the five emirate councils of the state.
In his reaction to the development, elder statesman Tanko Yakasai regretted how many people are attaching meaning to the statement, insisting that Kwankwaso is not the state’s governor-elect.
He said the matter should be taken seriously only when the governor-elect, Abba Kabir Yusuf, expresses his opinion. Therefore, Kwankwaso’s statement was an expression of his personal opinion.
“As a father, I don’t know if Kwankwaso actually made the statement or not, but if he did, then I think it is too early in the day to make such a statement because there is a sitting governor and a state House of Assembly in place and the governor-elect has not been sworn in,” he said.
On whether the incoming government has powers to reinstate the former Emir and discharge the present set-up, Yakassai said: “The reality is that traditional rulers are subordinates to the state government, and the governor has powers to make and unmake them, no matter how powerful they may be.”
Yakasai also expressed concern at the role of politics in the life of traditional leadership in Nigeria, saying incessant interventions in the form of deposition or reinstatement in an attempt by politicians to exert their authority over the leaders was most unfortunate.
Speaking to Daily Sun, a former head of the Department of Political Science, Bayero University, Kano, Kamilu Sani Fagge, observed that Kwankwaso could as well be flying a kite to assess public opinion on the issue.
He said the incoming administration has the power to revisit the issue, recalling that in the past, former governor Abubakar Rimi had balkanised the emirate in the state, only for the administration of former governor Sabo Barkin Zuwo to reassign and restore the old order upon his assumption of office.
He urged Abba Kabir Yusuf’s incoming administration to guide its policy options by fairness and justice and consider the state’s peace, stability, and unity in its decisions.
