On Friday, 24 May 2024, protesters stormed the Presidential Villa and the National Assembly to protest Muhammadu Sanusi 11’s reinstatement as Kano State’s 16th Emir. Recall that on Thursday, 23 May 2024, Kano State Governor Abba Yusuf signed the new Kano Emirate Council Law after the State House of Assembly annulled the law passed by then-governor Abdullahi Ganduje that resulted in the creation of four extra emirates in the historic city.

In a separate judgement a Federal High Court in Kano instructed the State administration not to enforce the new law. The former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria has since been turbaned as the 16th Emir of Kano.

Speaking with newsmen during the protest, Abdullahi Saleh, the leader of the Northern Nigeria Peace and Development Foundation, stated that Governor Yusuf’s actions are aimed at erasing his predecessor’s legacy, and that President Bola Tinubu should act quickly to prevent the State from devolving into anarchy.

“A lot has gone wrong in the state, but concerned Nigerian nationalists believed it was preferable to let Kano state work out its difficult issues. However, Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf of Kano State’s reckless acts on Thursday, when he fired five Emirs in order to reappoint Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi as the 16th Emir of Kano, have reawakened us to the importance of raising the alarm about the State Governor’s destructive excesses.”

“Since taking office, Governor Abba Yusuf has committed a series of heinous crimes that read like a criminal’s rap sheet. This newest farce of firing five Emirs to install his acolyte was accomplished by convincing the Kano State House of Assembly, which he had successfully converted into a rubber stamp, to ratify his illegal activities.”

They, along with Governor Yusuf, have gone so far in their desperation that they may set fire to the historic city and cause land breaches. We are here today to appeal to President Tinubu to intervene in the Kano Emirate crisis,” Saleh added.”

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