There is aparadox in the relationship between politicians and traditional rulers in Nigeria. Before elections, prominent presidential and gubernatorial candidates queue to pay homage to traditional rulers and solicit their blessing. But after elections,the agency changes hands: a traditional ruler must walk on eggshells to avoid being dethroned. Like the Pope, traditional rulers have “soft” power, but state governors possess “hard” power. Adolf Hitler famously threatened the Pope.
In 2014, when the then Emir of Kano, Ado Bayero, died, Sanusi was not the choice of the kingmakers, according to Tanko Yakassai, a leader of the Arewa Consultative Forum. Yakassai said that, following the demise of the emir, “his eldest son was announced as the emir, but it was later changed.
But what future does this tit-for-tat politics portendfor the stability and sanctity of the Kano emirate, especially given the deep-seated mutual animus between Kwankwaso and Ganduje?If APC regains Kano in 2027 and a Ganduje protégé becomes governor, would Sanusi be dethroned again and replaced with Bayero? As it is, Sanusi is in Kwankwaso’s camp, while Bayero is in Ganduje’s, and the fate of either is tied to who governs KanoState.