Buhari ordered Sanusi’s dethronement, says Kwankwaso

Rabiu Kwankwaso, former governor of Kano state, has accused President Muhammadu Buhari of giving the order to dethrone Muhammadu Sanusi II as emir.

Speaking in an interview with the BBC Hausa, Kwankwaso alleged Buhari instructed officials of the state to depose the ex-monarch.

Sanusi was on Monday dethroned by the Kano executive council led by Abdullahi Ganduje over allegations of insubordination.

He has since left the state for a village in Nasarawa while Aminu Ado Bayero, one of the sons of his predecessor, was installed as the new emir of Kano.

Kwankwaso, who appointed Sanusi as emir in 2014, however, said while Buhari said he would not interfere in the dispute between Ganduje and Sanusi, the president influenced his removal.

He described Sanusi’s dethronement as a sad development, saying no responsible government would have taken such a step.

“Let me begin by saying today is a very sad day in Kano, Nigeria and by extension in the entire world, because His Highness the Emir of Kano (Sanusi) is a global person. What we have seen is very sad because there is no responsible government that is supposed to take the kind of step taken by Kano State Government by dethroning Emir Muhammad Sanusi II,” Kwankwaso said.

“However, like people who are close to President Muhammadu Buhari often say that the President does not intervene in disputes; that, if people are in dispute the President just keeps quiet, but we in Kano do not see him (President Muhammadu Buhari) like that; we see him like he selects where he intervenes. And where he is supposed to intervene, he doesn’t, but where he is not supposed to intervene, that is where he does.

“You see leaders here in Kano State Government themselves are saying they were given the order to dethrone the Emir. He (President Muhammadu Buhari) is the one that gave them the order. Here in Kano as we see, Buhari destabilises where ever he puts his hands.”

Kwankwaso also said Sanusi should have been allowed to choose his place of relocation rather than being forced somewhere.

Abubakar Mahmoud, the lawyer representing Sanusi, had said the ex-monarch wanted to move to Lagos but was forced to Nasarawa.

But the Kano state attorney-general, on Wednesday, said the state government did not banish Sanusi to Nasarawa.

Sanusi’s lawyer had asked for the release of the former emir, saying his forced relocation to Nasarawa is illegal and unconstitutional.