LAMIDO SANUSI: The wrong Emir of Kano, By Femi Aribisala

His Royal Highness, the new Emir of Kano, might end up
with the same fate that befell him as CBN Governor.
Of all the cities in Northern Nigeria, Kano is perhaps the
most important. Although it used to be subject to the
Sokoto Caliphate, in many respects it has since become a
far more important city in Nigeria than Sokoto. Kano was
the administrative capital of the entire Northern Nigeria
under British colonial rule. Today, it is by far the biggest
metropolis in Northern Nigeria. It is not only the vibrant
commercial capital of the region; it is a leading epicenter of
economic activity in sub-Saharan Africa.
True progressives
Kano is also in many respects the most truly progressive
state in Nigeria. It has never been a follow-the-leader city.
The people of Kano have a mind of their own. They
specialize in bucking the national trend. Kano is the city of
trail-blazing Mallam Aminu Kano and the Northern
Elements Progressive Union (NEPU), which later became
the formidable People’s Redemption Party (PRP). It is also
the city of Maitama Sule, another one of Nigeria’s former
luminaries and perhaps the most distinguished orator ever
in the history of Nigerian politics.
For these reasons and more, the politics of Kano have far-
reaching regional and national implications. It also goes
without saying that the Emir of Kano is inevitably a very
influential man, not only in Kano and the North, but in
Nigeria as a whole. By virtue of his office, a lot of people
look up to him. His views go a long way to shape public
opinion in the Northern part of the country and even beyond.
This makes the choice of the Emir of Kano more than a local
affair. It is a choice that must be made soberly and with
great circumspection as befitting such a local office of
national significance.
Lack of probity
This makes the choice of Lamido Sanusi, the disgraced
former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, as the new
Emir of Kano most inappropriate. It is a choice that,
wittingly or unwittingly, will bring the office of the Emir into
disrepute. It is improper that a man who still has
allegations of financial improprieties hanging over his head
at the national level, to which he might have to answer in
the court of law, should be appointed to such an important
post. This is how Nigerian leaders show they have little or
no understanding of the ethics of public office and good
governance. Lamido Sanusi has just been fired as CBN
governor on allegations of corrupt practices. How then can
such a man be rewarded with the appointment of Emir of
Kano before his innocence is established?
This is the Nigerian way and it is the way of ignoble and
corrupt practices. Sanusi’s appointment to such an
important post could not have taken place in countries
concerned about probity and transparency in public office.
His appointment confirms the allegations of our gaggle of
Western traducers that Nigeria is a citadel of corruption. It
tells the world that Nigeria deserves to be one of the lowest-
ranked countries on the corruption index of Transparency
International; a global civil society organization that
engages in comparative analysis of the levels of corruption
in the countries in the world.
Case against Sanusi
Sanusi is accused by the federal government of running the
accounts of the CBN like a bull in a china shop. It is only in
Nigeria that you can have a Central Bank governor spend
government money as outrageously and as whimsically as
Sanusi is alleged to have done. The government reveals
that Sanusi gave away nothing less than ₦163 billion in 63
unauthorised “intervention projects” in different parts of the
country. This largesse is more than the entire annual
budget of a state like Edo. He is also accused of being guilty
of a number of grave financial improprieties.

Will he now get away with these corrupt practices simply
because he has been appointed as Emir, or will he be
prosecuted to the full extent of the law? Your guess is as
good as mine. If the charges against him are dropped
simply because of his appointment, it will be another
example of Nigeria’s tendency to condone corruption. Even
the former prime minister of Israel was tried and sentenced
to jail for corruption, which is what happens in those
countries with zero tolerance for the improprieties of public
officials. The question now is whether the Emir of Kano is
beyond the law. Another question is whether Nigeria a real
republic or no more than a banana republic?
The Emir of Kano does not have any constitutional immunity
from criminal prosecution. If Sanusi is prosecuted in spite of
his appointment and found guilty, it would undoubtedly be
demeaning to the office of the Emir of Kano when and if he
is ignominiously sent to jail. Indeed, he would be the first
Emir to be granted such distinction in Nigeria. While every
Nigerian must be deemed innocent of all charges until
proven guilty in a court of law, commonsense dictates that
you do not appoint a man with criminal allegations hanging
over his head into high office until he has cleared himself of
those allegations in the court of law.
APC treachery
This makes the appointment of Sanusi as Emir by Governor
Kwankwaso of Kano an act of deliberate mischief. The
Nigerian Senate recently declared Sanusi a liar and
mischief-maker for making false allegations that a
whopping 49 billion was missing from the federal accounts.
A liar and mischief-maker is not suitable for the politically-
sensitive post of Emir of Kano. Governor Kwankwaso
himself was accused of being a fraudster by no less a
person than Goodluck Jonathan, the President of Nigeria.
What we now have is that an alleged fraudster has
appointed another alleged fraudster into high office,
undermining the reputation and integrity of the important
city of Kano.
Are there no protocols concerning the appointment of Emirs
and Obas in Nigeria? Certainly there must be. Even if there
is none, should propriety not tell Kwankwaso that a man
facing corruption charges is not be eligible for political
appointment? Only in Nigeria does this kind of disregard for
ethics and good governance hold sway. Since this is
coming from one of the new kingpins of the APC, who is
even being touted by some as presidential- candidate
material, what does it tell us about “fresh air” that the APC
claims it will bring to Nigerian politics? It tells us that the
APC is one big charade.
Make no mistake about it: this is a political appointment.
Even more pointedly, it is an APC appointment. Governor
Kwankwaso who made this appointment is a rebel PDP
Governor who recently defected to the APC. He would not
have made the appointment as a PDP governor. This
appointment was made to spite the government of Goodluck
Jonathan. But what small-minded people like Kwankwaso
don’t seem to understand is that when they undermine the
government of the Goodluck Jonathan, they are
undermining the government of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria.
Unworthy governor
One of the allegations against Sanusi by the federal
government is that he is suspected to be one of the
financiers of Boko Haram. The fact that the man is now
appointed as Emir, without these allegations being ironed
out, is further evidence that some Northerners are not ready
to confront the issue of terrorism in the North. If they were, a
man facing terrorism-related charges by the federal
government would not be the preferred choice as Emir of
Kano, a city that has been attacked severally by the Boko
Haram.
By this act, Kwankwaso has made himself an unworthy
governor of Kano. Only an unworthy governor would turn
such a revered institution as the emirate of Kano into
political football. Kwankwaso has made the people of Kano
into a laughing-stock. Revered institutions like that of the
Emir of Kano should be beyond the shenanigans of this type
of political manipulation. I have said it before and I say it
again: there is nothing progressive about the APC. This
appointment of Sanusi as the new Emir of Kano is further
proof. What the APC bring to Nigeria is the same tired old-
time corrupt politics that has been the bane of the country
for the longest time. The APC is one big con.

Unfortunately for Kwankwaso, he chose the wrong state to
do this prank. Kano is a highly volatile city. The people are
not going to take this appointment lightly. Already, there
have been a number of violent skirmishes since the
appointment. Kwankwaso has lighted a bush-fire whose
consequences may be more than he bargained for. You can
never tell how far Kano citizens who have been brazenly
disrespected by the governor will go in registering their
protest. In any case, Kwankwaso’s act is sure to backfire
against the APC in Kano. This means we have not yet heard
the last of Kwankwaso’s treachery.
Questionable future
If Lamido Sanusi were wise, he should spend some time
reading the tea-leaves. Some people are already concluding
that Sanusi is the new Emir by divine providence. However,
appointments as Emir or even as Sultan are no longer
sacrosanct. Mustapha Jokolo was removed as the Emir of
Gwandu in 1995 and replaced by Mohammed Jega. Ibrahim
Dasuki was removed as the Sultan of Sokoto in 1996 and
replaced by Muhammadu Maccido.
Therefore, this is a piece of advice for the new Emir of Kano.
Don’t bother to move your belongings into the Emir’s
palace just yet. Don’t even bother to change the curtains or
the carpets for now. You may not be on your throne for
long. Thanks to Kwankwaso, the Kano Emirate has been
politicized to all effects and purposes. Today, it is clearly in
the APC camp. But if the APC lose the governorship election
in Kano in February next year, it is not improbable that the
Emirate will immediately be declared as a PDP terrain.
In that case, His Royal Highness, the new Emir of Kano,
might end up with the same fate that befell him as CBN
Governor. He might be summarily dismissed.