The new emir of Kano, His Highness Sanusi Lamido Aminu Sanusi, was on Monday afternoon officially presented his letter of appointment, but there is no palace to go for now. There is tension around the palace as some youths opposed to Sanusi’s appointment have surrounded the compound, with the official residence of the emir now effectively under lock and key. Noticeably, the family of the late emir, Alhaji Ado Bayero, was not represented at the letter-presentation event which took place at the government house, Kano. By tradition, Sanusi was supposed to go to the palace in order to be received by the palace officials, who will pay homage to him. Sanusi was picked ahead of Alhaji Sanusi (also correctly spelt as Sunusi) Lamido Ado Bayero, the first son of the late emir, leading to pockets of protests in the city on Sunday.
Calm has since returned, but events around the palace have continued to generate tension. At the presentation of his appointment letter, Sanusi said the Bayero and Sanusi families are one and would not allow events around the succession to create a gulf between them. “I want to assure you that there is no family rift at all, we’re all together, and we belong to the same family,” Sanusi said, blaming outsiders for the rift. There has been a lot of drama since the death of Bayero on Friday, with rumours circulating all-day on Sunday that his son had been chosen to succeed him. However, the Kano State government later announced Sanusi as its choice from the list of three nominees submitted by the kingmakers of the emirate council. Many are faulting the choice of Sanusi as politically motivated ─ given the perceived deep involvement of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the perceived antagonism of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Sanusi was suspended as governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) by President Goodluck Jonathan in February following a turbulent relationship.
Source: The Cable
