Aminu Ado Bayero has been ordered by a Kano High Court to stop presenting himself as the 15th Emir of Kano and to allow the police to remove him from the little palace on State Road.
The ruling was made on Monday by Justice Amina Adamu Aliyu, who presided over the court.
The order made on Monday is in force until June 11, 2024, when the substantive motion is scheduled to be heard.
This legal battle came about due to a decision made on Thursday by the Federal High Court, which stopped the statute creating the state’s five abolished emirates and prevented Muhammadu Sunusi II from being reinstated as Kano’s emir.
Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, however, disagreed with the decision, stating that the judge who rendered it was in the United States. Governor Yusuf has promised to inform the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) of the situation. “There is nothing stopping Muhammadu Sanusi II’s recognition as the Emir of Kano,” he claimed.
In defiance of the initial ruling, Sanusi II moved into the emir’s palace on Friday and commenced his duties as the Emir of Kano. On Saturday morning, Bayero, who was out of town when he was deposed, returned to Kano and was escorted under heavy security to a mini palace on State Road.
The Commissioner of Police in Kano, Muhammad Gumel, alongside other security chiefs, asserted their commitment to enforcing the court’s orders.
“The order of the court restraining Sanusi as Emir will be followed to the letter,” said Commissioner Gumel.
The court order also affects other traditional rulers. It restrains Nasiru Ado Bayero, Ibrahim Abubakar II, Kabiru Muhammad Inuwa, and Aliyu Ibrahim Gaya from parading themselves as emirs of Bichi, Gaya, Rano, and Karaye respectively.
The defendants in this suit include Ado Bayero, Ibrahim Abubakar II, Kabiru Muhammad Inuwa, Aliyu Ibrahim Gaya, the Inspector General of Police, the Director of the Department of State Services, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, and the Nigerian Army. The plaintiffs are the Attorney General of Kano State, the Speaker of the Kano State House of Assembly, and the Kano State House of Assembly.
Justice Aliyu emphasised the importance of maintaining the rule of law, stating, “This court will ensure that its orders are respected and upheld until the substantive motion is heard.”
The situation remains tense in Kano as the legal battles continue, with many eyes on the 11th June 2024 hearing.
REPORTERS AT LARGE earlier reported that Kano State Governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf has ordered the arrest of dethroned Emir of Kano, Alhaji Ado Bayero.
On Saturday, Bayero, whose whereabouts have been unknown since he was sacked on Thursday, arrived in the ancient city with a crowd of supporters receiving him at the airport.
But as soon as he arrived, Governor Yusuf ordered the immediate arrest of the deposed Monarch.
