Muhammadu Sanusi II Reinstated as Emir of Kano

Muhammadu Sanusi II has been reinstated as the Emir of Kano following a resolution by the Kano State House of Assembly to dethrone the current Emir and dismantle the four new Emirates established under a controversial 2019 law.

In May 2019, the assembly approved an amendment to the Kano State Emirate Council Law, which facilitated the balkanisation of the Kano Emirate. The legislation was originally conceived to reduce the influence of Muhammadu Sanusi, who was then the Emir of Kano. Subsequently, Abdullahi Ganduje, the governor of the state at the time, signed the bill into law. This law divided Kano into five separate emirates: Kano, Rano, Gaya, Karaye, and Bichi, with emirs appointed to each emirate.

In March 2020, Ganduje deposed Sanusi as Emir of Kano, citing “total disrespect to lawful instructions from the office of the governor.” During a plenary session on Tuesday, Lawan Hussaini Dala, the majority leader, proposed a motion to amend the law, arguing that it was not conceived in good faith and expressing concerns regarding the creation of the emirates. The house subsequently resolved to amend the law, with the newly passed bill aiming to abolish the five emirates and “all the appointments or offices arising therefrom.”

Furthermore, the bill stipulates that the governor should restore the previous Kano emirate system. While the governor has yet to officially assent to the bill, fresh developments have confirmed that Sanusi has been reinstated as the Emir of Kano and is expected to be in Kano on Friday. According to credible inside sources who spoke to The Leadership, “So certainly with the passage of the Bill, Sanusi automatically stands reinstated. No need for confirmation, the thing to do is wait for the Governor to assent to it.”

Meanwhile, the Majority Leader of the Kano State House of Assembly, Lawan Hussaini Chediyar Yan Gurasa, who sponsored the Amendment Bill, revealed to journalists shortly after Thursday’s session that “the bill has been sent to the governor for assent. Now, there is no longer an active Emir in Kano in all the five Emirates: Kano, Bichi, Gaya, Rano, and Karaye. The law now provides the governor to call on the traditional kingmakers to choose a new king.”