-What Gov. Ganduje Said, Actual Reasons He Did Not Disclose
-Corruption Case Against the Emir Resumes
-What Awe And Keffi People Still Say About The Emir
-His Loquaciousness, Unguarded Utterances And Other
-Unexplained Reasons That Cost The Emir’s Throne
By Sameer Yusuf Ciroma
The road ahead of the dethroned Emir of Kano, Muhamadu Sanusi ll may be clouded with frustrating prospects as Kano State Public Complaints and Anti-Corruption Commission is set to continue with investigation of the Emir over an alleged N2.2 bilion land scam at Gandu Sarki in Kano metropolis.
Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, who disclosed this in an interactive session with newsmen in Kano recently said the reason why the former Emir had to go was his antithetic tendencies towards reform of the traditional institution.
“The former emir did not cooperate with the process of reform. The process was truncated, so the only option for him was to find his way out. And that was what happened,” Ganduje said, adding that, “when the process started, there were some legal issues that were slowed. That time there was a so-called Kano Elders Forum that tried to also frustrate the reform process. Their case was squashed by another court of competent jurisdiction.”
“The reform’s sole aim is to trickle down development to other parts of the state, particularly the communities that house the new emirates that were created”, he said.
Ganduje also disclosed that the probe on the former Emir was halted following court litigation instituted by the former Monarch.
“Our state’s anti-corruption agency will continue probing the former Emir over the issues he has with the agency. When he took the agency to court to stop probing him, the agency stopped. But now, the case has been quashed. So, the agency will continue probing him according to the laid down law.”
Federal High Court sitting in Kano had recently dismissed a suit filed by Sanusi seeking to restrain the Kano State anti-corruption commission from continuing investigation over the matter.
Commenting on the attitude of the deposed Emir of Kano, the Muslim community in Keffi described him as arrogant, saying that the Emir saw himself as next to no other monarch and as the only worthy successor of the Danfodio dynasty. One of the residents of Keffi, Mal. Ali Angwan Waje, who spoke to Palace Monitor said the Emir displayed his arrogant and holier than thou attitude during the Turbaning ceremony of the Emir of Keffi in 2018, when he refused to be led in Jummu’at prayers but appointed himself as the Imam of the prayer, a congregation of which constituted senior and leading Emirs in the north including the spiritual leader of Nigerian Muslims, the Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar lll.
He also displayed similar attitude when he was banished to Awe in Nasarawa State where he refused to be led in prayers but arrogated himself the Imamship of the prayer in the mosque which he prayed, an act which is not acceptable in Islam.
It would be recalled that in the built up to the 2019 General Election, the Emir was all over the place exhorting his subjects using loquacious and unguarded utterances urging them not to vote any politician contesting the position of the President, Governor or law maker who is an illiterate; a statement that was interpreted by the supporters of President Buhari as apparent reference to him (Buhari), because he had always spoken against him using derogatory and disrespectful words.
This outbursts and unguarded utterances of the Emir no doubt pitched him against the people, particularly in the presidency, who do not tolerate any disdain, animosity or disrespect for the president, hence the reason why he was on his own, when Ganduje was busy working on how to dethrone him.
In fact, some people are of the opinion that his major undoing, when he was on the throne, was his confrontational attitude towards the Federal government, particularly the President which led him to meet his Waterloo.