Ganduje: Sanusi couldn’t change from social critic to traditional ruler — that was his problem

Muhammadu Sanusi, former emir of Kano, was deposed because he did not understand the responsibilities of a traditional ruler, says Abdullahi Ganduje, governor of the state.

Sanusi was dethroned in March 2020 by the Kano government, citing “total disrespect to lawful instructions from the office of the governor”.

Speaking on ‘Politics Today’, a Channels Television programme, Ganduje said the former emir was unable to evolve from a social critic to a traditional ruler.

He said Sanusi forgot “to watch his tongue” and was destroying the institution.

“Well, the real story was that the deposed emir of Kano did not understand the responsibilities of a traditional ruler especially for a strong institution like that of Kano,” Ganduje said on Friday.

“The emir of Kano was a social critic, a celebrated social critic and there was nothing wrong with that because he is an educated person, there is freedom of speech.

“When I was the deputy of Governor Kwankwaso, Sanusi was an executive director in a bank and he made a statement that instead of providing water in the state we were building a house in Abuja– the governor’s lodge in Asokoro.

“I remember my governor said either the bank sacks him or we should withdraw our accounts from the bank and the bank did not sack him, so we withdrew N969million from that bank. That was the work of a social critic.

“But when he became the emir of Kano, he refused to change from that stature to the stature of a traditional ruler. He is an economist but he failed to understand [that] in economics you have to inherit assets and liabilities. But he only inherited the assets of a traditional institution by giving orders, staying in a mansion, dressing gorgeously, being addressed as a king but the liability of that institution, you have to watch your words, you have to watch your tongue and he didn’t do that.

“That was the problem. That was the biggest problem; that he could not change his mode of life from social critic to an institution.

“As of now, that institution does not afford a social critic of his style. With the problem in the society, he was destroying the institution. That was why I had a problem with him; he was destroying the institution.”

On the debate about where the next All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate should come from, Ganduje said the slot should be given to the southern region.

“I think zoning should be respected as a strategy to win the election. Well, the southern part of the country but there should be a consensus from the members,” he said.