The Kano administration has instructed the commissioner of police to force Aminu Bayero, the 15th Emir of Kano, out of Nasarawa Palace.
The instruction was given by Governor Abba Yusuf through Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice Haruna Dederi.
At a press conference on Thursday in Kano, Mr. Dederi announced the instruction and clarified that the government had completed preparations for a general palace refurbishment.
He claims that the Kano administration has finalized plans to demolish and rebuild the crumbling wall right now.
Mr. Dederi accepted the Federal High Court’s Kano Division’s decision on the Kano Emirates Council (Repeal) Law, 2024 and saw it as a defense of the rule of law.
Governor Abba Yusuf gave the directive via the attorney general and commissioner for justice, Haruna Dederi.
Mr Dederi conveyed the directive at a news conference on Thursday in Kano and explained that the government had finalised plans for a general palace renovation.
According to him, the Kano government has concluded plans for immediate demolition and reconstruction of its dilapidated wall.
Mr Dederi acknowledged the Kano Division of the Federal High Court ruling regarding the Kano Emirates Council (Repeal) Law, 2024 and viewed same as upholding the rule of law.
The attorney general stated, “The ruling of the court has unequivocally reaffirmed the validity of the law passed by the Kano State House of Assembly and assented to by the governor on May 2024.
“This part of the judgment is very fundamental to the entire matter. Further implication of the ruling is that all actions taken by the government before the emergence of the interim order of the court are equally validated.”
Mr Dederi added, “This means that abolishing the five emirates created in 2019 is validated and the deposition of the five emirs is also sustained by the Federal High Court.
“By implication, this means that Muhammadu Sanusi II remains the Emir of Kano. The judge also granted our application for the stay of proceedings until the Court of Appeal deals with the appeal on jurisdiction.
“Happily, the signing of the law and the reinstatement of Sanusi II were done on 23 May, 2024 before the emergence of the Interim Order, which was served on us on 27 May, 2024.”
Mr Dederi stressed that following this ruling, the Kano government “has directed the state commissioner of police to eject the deposed Emir of the eight metropolitan local governments from the government property where he is ‘trespassing’.”
“The government will commence general renovation of the property with immediate effect,” he said.
In its decision regarding the substantive suit, the court upheld the Kano Emirate Council Repeal Law 2024 and declared all of Mr. Yusuf’s activities following the law’s enactment to be invalid.
On May 23, the Kano House of Assembly abolished the four Emirate Councils that the then-Governor Abdullahi Ganduje had established from the Kano Emirate in 2019.
On May 23, Mr. Yusuf overthrew Aminu Ado-Bayero, the fifteenth Emir of Kano, and installed Muhammad Sanusi II, the fourteenth Emir who had been overthrown in March 2020, as the new Emir of Kano.
