Emir Of Kano And The Politicisation Of The Traditional Institution

By HRH King Appolus Chu, OFR

The unfolding drama concerning the throne of the Emir of Kano is becoming quite worrisome. It is clearly a situation that shows just how much politicians are overstepping into areas where they ought not to encroach, especially when it concerns the traditional institution. 

There are a few traditional stools in Nigeria that are revered and venerated in the country and beyond, not just for the clout, profile and sacredness surrounding them, but also because of their rich and long history as well as the size of the domain under the influence of such stools, which has earned them a lot of respect and glory. The throne of the Emir of Kano is one of such stools.  

Sadly, in recent times we have become witnesses to how political office holders have used their power of incumbency to interfere with the traditional order of the people and make mockery of the revered stool. 

The stool of the Emir of Kano predates colonialism and the creation of the Nigerian state. Such a revered stool isn’t something that can easily be tampered with without the fear of breakdown of law and order. The situation of Kano can be described as a pot tittering on the edge of toppling over, if politicians do not stop toying with it. 

In Nigeria, it goes without saying that the traditional institution is the last hope of the people. As a matter of fact, it is the traditional institution that serves as the very foundation for our Nigerianness, which is why in filling most official forms we always find columns that require the endorsements of our traditional rulers. Let us also not forget that the entity known as Nigeria would not exist if the British did not first either sign treaties with or defeat our monarchs and their people in battle. It is a credit to the wisdom of the British that they recognized that they would have struggled ceaselessly in trying to govern the country if they did not recognize the natural and traditional authority of the people, to which the people were already accustomed, hence they did not dare eradicate the traditional institution.  

Also, it is to their traditional rulers that the people turn when they lose confidence in government. And the government itself relies on the traditional institution to maintain its hold over the people, because it knows that the people always listen to their traditional rulers. When any administration loses control over the public and there is some form of riot or mob action that threatens the collapse of law and order, it is to the traditional institution that both the government and the people turn for direction and guidance. That is because of the respect the people have for their traditional stools, which they regard not only as the throne of their kings, but also as the seat of their cultural and religious values. But in a situation where political office holders begin to overreach and attempt to usurp the ancestral and ancient powers of the traditional stools, where will the common man and the government fall back to when issues arise that need the intervention of the traditional institution? 

The case in Kano is a situation where political office holders are beginning to politicize the traditional institution, thereby taking away the glory, honour, beauty and prestige of the monarchy; consequently eroding the respect the people have for the throne as well as the control and influence the throne has over the people. 

We have had instances in this country where both military and civil administrations deposed or dethroned traditional rulers at a whim and the sole interest of whoever was in control of the government of the state or country at the time. In a situation where the stool of the Sultan of Sokoto, the Emir of Kano or any other traditional stool in the country can easily be tampered with by politicians then it is possible for an administration to wake up one morning and decide to proscribe the traditional institution as a whole. That seems to be the direction in which things are going. If the politicians keep having their way in this regard, can they control the people as effectively as the traditional institution is doing?  

I am from the southern part of the country and I am not in support of what is going on in Kano, because it is a big disrespect to the traditional institution. When they removed Lamido Sanusi as Emir of Kano, no traditional ruler was happy about it, because it’s not about the person on the stool, but about tampering with the sacredness of the throne of the emirate. Unfortunately, the situation today is such that most traditional rulers are scared to talk about what is going on in Kano. They cannot talk because they don’t know if the administration or political office holders will use whatever they say against them. Already, traditional rulers cannot leave their domains for short trips outside their states, even when such trips involve family occasions like the weddings of their children, without obtaining the permission of their governors. 

Political office holders have so rough-handled most of our traditional stools and their occupants to the point that, although the titles remain, they are nothing more than ceremonial offices, devoid of real power and influence. Our monarchs no longer have the courage to talk to their subjects who are politicians and advise them when they are going astray, for fear that such politicians may end up holding grudges against them if they do not like their counsel. And, as our recent political history has shown, if the politician eventually finds his way into political office tomorrow, may use that grudge against the traditional ruler to do everything to reduce that traditional ruler to nothing – all because of something that happened some years ago. That is how bad it is. Hence, our royal fathers have been cowed into silence by their political sons, and that is probably one reason for the dysfunctional state of affairs in our country today as our political office holders now see themselves as all-wise and all-conquering overlords who do not need the counsel of anyone.  

In the face of the current happenings in Kano, traditional rulers cannot remain on the fence and keep quiet as if it does not concern them. Yes, it is commendable that some of us are making moves to certain political quarters in our individual capacities, but that is not enough. It will make more impact in the face of situations like this when the National Council of Traditional Rulers of Nigeria calls an emergency meeting of all the traditional rulers of the country and pays a visit to the President or the Governor of the state and speaks out as a unified voice on the matter. It will definitely send a stronger message on the need to respect the traditional institution. But when we do not talk and every traditional ruler pretends as if nothing is wrong because they feel they are safe in their domains in the present administration then we should consider ourselves as nothing more than traditional rulers for just a moment. By that, I mean that if the administration in power is happy with you for the moment, good luck to you. But if the next administration is headed by someone your forefathers offended years ago or someone who doesn’t have you in their good books, then chances are that you will be dethroned and humiliated by that political office holder. 

It is indeed sad that the traditional rulers of the country cannot come together as one body to make a statement when situations like this arise, when even commercial motorcycle riders, market sellers and every other group have associations and unions that protect their members. The National Council of Traditional Rulers of Nigeria is the umbrella association of traditional rulers in the country. It should function as an institution for the protection of the sanctity of the traditional institution. We should speak out and condemn the politicization of the traditional institution. If we are not doing that or cannot do so, then we should consider ourselves as only enjoying the privilege we have while it lasts, because the next administration to come may not like our face. 

The reality of the traditional institution in Nigeria today is that it has become politicized and political officeholders are digging their way into the traditional institution, dethroning monarchs they don’t like and using the sacred thrones of the people to settle or compensate their political friends. Even in situations where the stool is hereditary or rotates among a particular family, politicians can easily raise another person from the family who is their friend, to take the throne instead of the rightful person; regardless of whether their appointee is prepared or has been groomed to become a monarch or not. 

Lastly, I did not expect Lamido Sanusi to come back to resume office as Emir of Kano. The reason being that the stool of Emir of Kano is the glory of their family, and by the time the family succumbs to a situation where persons who are not part of the royal family begin to toss the stool about from one royal family member to the other, then they have lost the dignity and completely watered down the prestige, glory and sacredness of the stool. That is nothing but making a mockery of the throne. He and every other member of the royal family ought to understand that it is only when the throne is powerful that they can enjoy the glory of being royalty. But when they allow others to commonize the throne, then there is nothing for them to glory about because they have become like every other family. 

A unified emirate signals a stronger throne. I expected that since the emirate has been re-consolidated into one and no longer fragmented, Sanusi would have had the integrity and strength of character to ask whoever is on the unified throne to continue. And this he would have done, for the sake of maintaining their dignity as members of the royal family. Such a sacrifice would uphold the sanctity of the throne and showcase his personality as one who is interested in preserving the relevance and glory of the throne more than his own personal interest. The ball is in his court to pay the price for the sustainability of the glory of their royal family, after all it is on record that he has once been the emir and that honour can never be taken away from him. 

As a respected statesman, Islamic scholar, promoter of peace and advocate of having things done the right way, he ought to look beyond his personal interest to focus on boosting respect for the throne. There is a saying that an elder cannot sit at home to watch the pregnant tethered goat struggling to give birth. Their revered ancestral stool must not be treated with levity in his time.  

Indeed the honourable thing would be for him to concede the throne to his cousin, Aminu Ado-Bayero, who is already on the throne, instead of dragging him out to occupy the throne, thereby turning the integrity of what their forefathers laboured to establish into a soap opera. Such an act will surely win him the commendation, respect and celebration of all Nigerians for years and generations to come.

– HRH King Appolus Chu, OFR is the Oneh-Eh Nchia X Eleme Kingdom, Rivers State and Chairman, Interface Committee Between the National Council of Traditional Rulers of Nigeria and the National Assembly on Constitutional Amendment and Review