RE: AND KANO SHALL BE ‘ONE’ AGAIN!

According to a modern philosopher, “In times of crisis, time flies. In times of calm, time also flies. In times of a mixture of crisis and calm, time continues to just fly.” Meaning that time waits for no one, as it continues to fly in leaps and bounds regardless of what action or inaction one is doing, or not doing. In the week since our discussion on this page of the Kano State Government vs. Kano Emirate Council imbroglio, so much has happened – in the courts of justice and the courts of public opinion; the former in new suits and cases, and the latter in hot pro- and anti- exchanges on radio airwaves and on the social media. (Google, for example: ‘President Buhari and Kano Emirs at Wudil Police Academy Graduation Thursday 19 December’).

But perhaps the most significant development has been the emergence of a new pressure group made up of citizens mainly from the four new emirates created by the Kano State Government who are seemingly out to counter the ‘Advocates For A United Kano’ which were covered on this page last week. The new group is called ‘Kano Integrity Forum’ and is led by a senior academic colleague Professor Abdu Salihi. They shared with me their opinion and, in the spirit of fair play, part of their statement is taken, as well as reactions from other readers.

KANO INTEGRITY FORUM: “The recent creation of new Emirate Councils in the State will serve the purpose of ensuring balanced development of the State, particularly in terms of establishing more specialised health institutions, post-secondary educational institutions, agricultural development service centres (for overwhelming socio-entrepreneurial growth), and will also uphold cultural and traditional heritage. The current Government in Kano State is fully committed to the reconstruction of the State and the Emirate Councils considering the very glaring examples from our sister states such as Jigawa, Yobe, Oyo and Bauchi where creations of new emirates did not ignite tensions as it did in Kano. We hail the Kano State Government for the giant stride and taking the bull by the horn by creating these four new emirates in the bid to transform Kano into a more modern state, not only in the eyes of Nigerians but to the entire global population. The Forum submits that the advantages of the creation of new emirates surpass the disadvantages, considering that, as stated earlier, there shall be the creation of unlimited job opportunities, establishment of higher institutions of learning and agricultural development, among others.

1. BABA ADAM ([email protected]): We know the genesis for reform of the Kano Emirate is due to the Governor’s perception that Emir Sanusi II supported PDP Candidate Abba Yusuf and, by extension, former Governor Kwankwaso. With that perception in mind, the Kano State House of Assembly did the Governor’s bidding by rubber-stamping his request. I concur with the ‘Advocates For A United Kano’ that it will be a mistake to breakup the 1,000-year emirate because of political disagreements. Furthermore, it will be a great mistake to outrightly depose Emir Sanusi II or seek to transfer one of the new emirs to the City. Please Governor, remember that your ascension to power from Deputy Governor to Governor,even though divinely ordained, was facilitated by others.

COMRADE IBRAHIM ABDU ZANGO ([email protected]): I wonder how this learned Columnist[Bala Muhammad] formulated this profound but one-sided thesis of the ‘Advocates For A United Kano’ led by Alhaji Bashir Tofa. In fact, Tofa cannot qualify to be an Elder while Alhaji Tanko Yakasai, Alhaji Dauda Dangalan and others are still around. Furthermore, those people living within Kano municipality can never represent the whole of Kano people. The Advocates should have gone round the state to justify whether the new Emirates have been accepted by their people or not. Kanawa are never in an artificial crisis unless you want to create such,in the manner in which the 1981 Kano Riot was artificially manifested by a few disgruntled elements. Kano Emir Sanusi as an educated person needs to re-read history from 1953-1963 and also what happened in Sokoto and Gwandu concerning Sultan Ibrahim Dasuki and Emir Mustapha Jokolo respectively. Government is government; you cannot rebel against it and be victorious.

MOHAMMED TUKUR USMAN ([email protected]): It is very perplexing that anybody can see the creation of new Emirates as beneficial, bringing development and “employment” – as dogarai or what? Hubris has enveloped the governors, they see themselves as omnipotent, all-powerful, etc. China’s Great Leap Forward was a disaster, Kano’s version can’t fare differently. And please is it possible that anyone in their right senses would desire the creation of a state out of the current Kano State? And to what end? Only politicians seeking to become big fish in small waters will see value in any state-creation exercise now. State-creation exercises of 1991 and 1996  benefited only their creators. The rest of the population have become more insular and more local. That’s why we have poor governance all over.

YUS-FAH DAWAKI ABU MUHAMMAD ([email protected]): I still cannot believe that educated and experienced people would fall victim to ego, egged on by puppeteers who are insanely loyal and willing to do their bidding for them to pocket something in their wallets. My take on the Kano Emirate crises falls under two intuitions: the first is that the Governor may be out to settle scores based on the perception and assumption that the Emir was not neutral in the 2019 Governorship election and, therefore, his enemy. Now, this is both political and personal, and these types of crises can be settled amicably and thoroughly. Among the dozens of ways of settling misunderstandings such as these, involving respected elders on both sides (modern government and traditional authority) in and out of the state could have resolved the problem, or at least could have cooled it down. My second take is that there is a prince very close to the top who hopes to one day be an emir himself. That is natural of princes. But is this prince, though seemingly quiet in all this crisis, not the real fire under the pot?

May Allah make it easy for us all.