It came so sudden and within a very short period of time, the whole scenario came in a jiffy and before we knew what was happening, the deed had been done! The deposition from the throne of the 14th Fulani Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, was a sad reminder of the derogation of the exalted office of traditional rulers in our society. It has become one of the low moments in the year. It would be recalled that Sanusi’s grandfather, Muhammadu Sanusi I, similarly lost the throne in 1963; a repeat of monumental loss.
Before now, the Kano state government’s official complaint was that the former emir showed disrespect to it by ignoring its directives such as that of the request to convene a meeting of the state’s Council of Emirs. Sanusi’s ordeal began with the state government’s announcement of his removal on accusations of insubordination for staying away from official functions in the state. To make matters worse, this humiliation was done in the presence of the four kingmakers of the emirate with the citation of the resolution of the State Executive Council at its emergency meeting, premised on the Kano State Emirate Law 2019, an action already set aside by the court. The former Emir was not only removed from office but was reportedly banished to Nasarawa dtate.
Deposition of the emir was no doubt a tragedy for the Kano Emirate, the North and indeed the old institution of royal fathers within the African women. Traditional rulers are a much older, more historic, more deeply rooted and, in the eyes of rural folks, more legitimate institution than modern governments. Today, state governors can appoint and remove traditional rulers based on constitutional provisions that compel traditional institutions to be supervised by government and political appointees. Governors are required to exercise their enormous powers wisely and in accordance with laws, rules and customs of the land.
In the pre-colonial Nigeria before the ‘scramble for African’, traditional rulers were well respected as symbols of the African ancestry and heritage. At this time, morality and decency was well cherished and the society was better for it. People relied on traditional authority to show them acceptable norms and values. Sadly, the Nigeria traditional institution has now been relegated and treated with low respect at least when compared with what it used to be. The 1960 independence and 1963 republican constitutions created a council of chiefs for traditional rulers at the regional level, while the 1979 gave them representation in the National Council of States at the federal level and council of chiefs at the state level.
By then, the council played advisory role on customary matters, cultural affairs, and chieftaincy matters, among others. The 1979 constitution allowed the local government reforms of 1976 that gave birth to local government system of administration, which confiscated and transmitted to the local government, the roles performed by the traditional institutions in the country. The incursion of the military and westernisation of African culture also contributed to the relegation of our traditional institutions. The 1999 Constitution does not offer anything different rather than empowering state governors to supervise the activities of traditional rulers. There is the need to correct this anomaly without further delay for sanity to be restored to our troubled society through legal and constitutional arrangements that would officially give power to traditional rulers.
Royal fathers should avoid political affiliation or stigmatisation in order evade from deposition tragedies. They should steer-clear of lust for money and materialism that could erode the respect, trust and dignity associated with the office of traditional rulers. Some royal fathers have been found to engage in street fighting, illegal dealings and bestowing or conferring chieftaincy titles on persons with questionable integrity. These add up to give the traditional institution a bad name. However, not a few royal fathers are persons of great charisma, reputation and achievements.
As for power-drunk governors, they should be patient with delicate issues and exercise caution while dealing with royal matters. The practice of presenting staff of office to royal fathers belittles them by state governors and should stop. A better arrangement should be put in place by the respective state houses of assembly to give autonomy to traditional institutions while the constitution should be amended to cater for this long awaited and timely reform.
On the advice being given to the deposed Emir on the way forward after the palace coup, I think he should thread softly. He should never rush into politics. As a statesman, he should rather be busy thinking of how to assist the nation in coming out from its current economic doldrums. As a renowned economist and former Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), he should never fail or be discouraged from speaking truth at all times. We should remind the former Emir that if he fails to speak the truth when necessary, he would have been silenced forever but if he continues to be the voice of the voiceless, posterity would surely smile on him. It is up to him to decide.
