Re: No tears for Emir Sanusi II

One wonders why only Kano state politics attracts many who do not even boarders with this rather volatile state.

Kano state since its creation has been enmeshed in one form of controversy or another, which a volatile state.  Though, I was born and bred in this commercial city but I cannot claim to know everything even as an elder. However, the political history from 1958 to date has not escaped my memory.

Late Sir Muhammad Sunusi came reigned when I was a boy of 11 years old. He reigned with humility, love and sincerity. This warmed the hearts of his people in Kano Emirate many of whom named their offsprings after his name Abdullahi. Truly, history would never forget this respected and revered Emir of Kano state, Alhaji, may God bless his soul ameen.

Kano state people are known to have great respect for their emirs right from Shehu Usman Danfodio to this time. Unfortunately, involvement in political partisanship has diminished and ridiculed the known tradition of our emirs, particularly in Kano state and other few states in Northern Nigeria.

 It is not in my character to get involved in traditional matter as I have always been told since my childhood to respect that seemingly holy institution; it may be odd to call it holy but when the hand of Shehu Danfodio produced such institution, I may not be accused by calling it a “holy institution”.

For one, these traditional rulers were the people that first embraced Islamic religion about 900 years ago and today 90 percent of our people are Muslims. So, this institution could be regarded and considered as a holy institution, and this is how I see it.

Late Sultan Ibrahim Dasuki was dethroned by the military government because he perhaps uttered what they don’t want him to say being the Sultan of Sokoto, may God bless his soul. After him many were shown the way out for perhaps political reasons.

I know, there was a time when emirs, obas and obis wanted to be given some constitutional recognition and the same late Ibrahim Dasuki was the chairman of that committee but he advised the government against, arguing that traditional institutions would be ridiculed and at the end of the day bastardized and openly abused by their very subjects.

Late Ibrahim Dasuki was right and today we see such wisdom but few of the presumed educated lots do not comprehend the danger facing our sacred institutions of the traditional rulers. What prompted me to write this piece was an article written by one Jamila Abubakar published by the Daily Trust of Wednesday, May 15, 2019. Her thesis had lots of mistakes, misdirection and misleading of junk journalism.

I do not intend to join issues with women because I respect women all over the world for they are everything good to a normal person who knows the vital benefits women give to the lives of humanity. However, Jamila’s thesis is misleading because she seemed to belong to the party who practically abused the person of Kano state governor the way she finished her article with somehow an abusive word, such as Ganduje will sleep with one eye open, what he did was done before and it collapsed.

It is obscene to recall all she said but time will prove her wrong. I believe this woman is like the other short ladies with snake poison utterances who has no political base in Kano. But she will always be at media abusing people even when her nice late husband did not dare abuse the people openly in the name of democratic rights in Nigeria.

Lady Jamila Abubakar, be reminded that Emir Sunusi II has been a controversial figure since he was working at the First Bank. I remember when Madugu bitterly accused Sir Sunusi II of being partisan. He, Madugu, petitioned the bank to either sack Sanusi or Kano government would withdraw its accounts and patronage from the bank.

So, you see our emir is a talkative as he did not read most of the humble silence of his forefathers. Late Muhammad Sunusi after being an emir was very powerful and religious. He was hardly likely to speak randomly, nobody knew about that until when he was unkindly dethroned by the NPC government in 1963. I was in primary four by then, but I cried having lost the gentle soul who brought about Kano to religious and commercial sanity.

Dr. Alhaji Ado Abdullahi Bayero, for the last 50 years nobody will accuse him of being too forward, but he reigned and ruled people kindly until his last breath. Kano state is now surrounded with many people whom the constitution of Nigeria gives them solace as to act and play as the indigenes of the state; they are now the people that poke their noses about everything Kano, trying to mutilate and set fire to the existing peace and harmony of the state.

They involve themselves in the local politics of the state, engineering gossips just to set Kano state ablaze even when they have everything at stake. Emir Sunusi got to see this and remember that it is God that gave him the “mulki” only God can always do that, nobody else. Having four more emirs in Kano to make five should not disturb him for by 2013, when he was the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, he did not know Kwankwaso would enthrone him as the Emir of Kano.  ….the best microfinance award?

Zango writes from Kano Unity Forum, Kano, Nigeria.

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