Court Halts Reinstatement of Sanusi as Kano Emir

 

A Federal High Court in Kano has issued an order preventing the Kano State Government from enforcing the Kano State Emirate Council Repeal Law. Justice Mohammed Liman granted the injunction following an application by Alhaji Aminu Babba Dan Agundi, the Sarkin Dawaki Babba of the Kano Emirate. Court documents related to the case have since circulated widely.

 

The Kano State House of Assembly recently dissolved all four newly created emirate councils. This action followed deliberations during a plenary session. Subsequently, Governor Abba Yusuf reappointed Lamido Sanusi as the Emir of Kano, four years after his dethronement by former governor Umar Ganduje. Additionally, Governor Yusuf deposed five emirs appointed by Ganduje and gave them a 48-hour ultimatum to vacate their official residences and palaces, directing them to hand over their duties to the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs.

 

In the latest legal development, the respondents in the fundamental rights case include the Kano State Government, the House of Assembly, the Speaker, the Attorney-General, the Commissioner of Police, the Inspector-General of Police, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, and the State Security Service. The court ordered that all court processes be served on the IGP in Abuja.

 

Judge Liman ruled that all parties must maintain the status quo prior to the passage and assent of the bill into law until the fundamental rights application is heard. The hearing is scheduled for June 3, 2024. An interim injunction was also granted, restraining the police and security services from enforcing the repealed law.

The repealed Kano State Emirs (Appointment and Deposition) Law had created the Rano, Karaye, Gaya, and Bichi Emirates in addition to the Kano Emirate. With the law's repeal, these newly created emirates have been dissolved, reconsolidating the Kano Emirate under a single ruler.