Dethroned Kano Emir Aminu Ado Bayero breaks silence

Mr Ado Bayero who addressed cheerful supporters said no one is above the law.

The dethroned emir of Kano, Aminu Ado Bayero, has urged Kano residents to remain peaceful and law-abiding amidst tension around the traditional seat.

Mr Ado Bayero spoke shortly after receiving the state commissioner of police at a mini-palace in the state on Saturday. As of the time of this report, he was staying in the Nassarawa House, a private residence of the Kano Emirate Palace.

Mr Ado Bayero who addressed cheerful supporters said no one is above the law and that he is hopeful “justice would prevail” on the issue of his dethronement.

He vowed to accept whatever the law states, adding that Kano is an important state in Nigeria and peace must not be tampered with.

“I call on the people to remain law-abiding while awaiting the outcome of the legal process on this tussle,” he said.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that the Kano State Governor, Abba Yusuf, reinstated Lamido Sanusi as the 16th Emir of Kano in a colourful ceremony on Friday.

Mr Sanusi was dethroned by the immediate past administration of Abdullahi Ganduje, who is the current national chairman of Nigeria’s ruling party, APC. Mr Sanusi was ousted in 2020 for showing “insubordination” to state authorities at the time.

On Thursday, to prepare grounds for the return of Mr Sanusi as emir, the Kano State House of Assembly abolished the five former emirates created out of the old Kano emirate and restated the old Kano emirate with only one emir.

That same day, Governor Yusuf signed the law and gave the emirs of the abolished emirates 48 hours to vacate their palaces.

But a Federal High Court had issued a last-minute order stopping the state government from abolishing all the five emirates created during the administration of former Governor Mr Ganduje and returning to the system where only one emir led Kano.

The ruling was a response to an application from Aminu Dan-Agundu, a Kano emirate official who opposed moving back to the old system.

However, Governor Yusuf said he would not recognise the ruling.

Referencing reports that the High Court judge was in the US when he gave the ruling, Mr Yusuf said at the ceremony reinstating Mr Sanusi: “Imagine a judge in America ordering us to halt the coronation of the Emir of Kano, Sanusi. Our laws are in place and they will not change.”

However, as of the time of this report, security agencies are insisting on enforcing the court order that halts the dethronement of Mr Bayero.

Security Agencies Position

Security forces including the Nigeria Police Force, soldiers, and Civil Defence officials paid a visit to Mr Ado Bayero on Saturday.

The mini-palace, located in the Nassarawa area of the state, is where Mr Bayero settled in when he returned to the northwestern state in the early hours of Saturday morning.

PREMIUM TIMES gathered that the Kano State Commissioner of Police, Usaini Gumel, led the security forces to meet Mr Bayero amidst tension over the emirate debacle in the state.

Before the visit to Mr Bayero, the commissioner had earlier addressed journalists and told the Kano State Government to obey the court order that halts the dethronement of Mr Ado Bayero.

Sanusi’s 2020 Ouster

Mr Sanusi was ousted in 2020 for showing “insubordination” to state authorities at the time.

However, most of his supporters believe he was sacked because he opposed the re-election of Mr Ganduje as governor in 2019.