In Nigeria, at the end of May, the local governor, a member of the opposition, reinstalled former emir Lamido Sanusi on the throne. He was ousted in 2020 by the previous governor and replaced by Aminu Ado-Bayero, who continues to claim his title. A federal court has just ruled in his favor, except that the authorities still don’t see it that way.
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The crisis continues in the northern city of Kano. Nigeriato decide who should occupy the seat of emir, the second most important dignitary in the country after the Sultan of Sokoto.
Despite two court rulings in favor of the deposed emir Aminu Ado-Bayero, the governor of Kano State still refuses to give in. After asking the local government to pay a little more than 6,000 euros to the deposed emir Aminu Ado-Bayero, the latest court decision, issued by a federal court on Thursday June 20, nevertheless annuls the law which made it possible to placing former emir Lamido Sanusi back on the throne and paving the way for the return of his predecessor.
If some traditional leaders welcomed a judgment “ who makes light prevail over lies “, the authorities in place, who support Lamido Sanusi, seem, according to them, to have immediately reinterpreted this court decision in his favor. The Commissioner of Justice of Kano State immediately announced that Lamido Sanusi would remain on the throne and that Aminu Ado-Bayero had to leave the residence in which he has lived since the beginning of this crisis, because it must be destroyed and renovated. Police were mobilized to expel the deposed emir as quickly as possible, authorities said.
A ” war for the throne »
This “ war for the throne » is also at the heart of very political issues and reflects a power struggle between two former governors of Kano state: on the one hand, the powerful Rabiu Kwankwasso, who appointed Lamido Sanusi to the post of emir in 2014 and the other, Abdullahi Ganduje, who ousted him from the throne in 2020.
The first founded the New Nigerian People’s Party (NNPP) in 2023, while the second is the national president of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
This is a potentially explosive situation, in which the President of Nigeria, Bola Tinubu, has yet to take a position.
Read alsoNigeria: in Kano, two emirs for one throne