Emir of Kano accepts Governor Ganduje's offer to chair council of traditional rulers

EMIR of Kano Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi has accepted the offer of Governor Abdullahi Ganduje to serve as the chairman of the Kano State Council of Emirs after a protracted delay as the ongoing dispute the two men simmered.

Over recent months, Governor Ganduje and Emir Sanusi have been involved in a public spat over the traditional rulers decision not to back the governor during the last general elections. Governor Ganduje subsequently asked anti-graft agencies to probe the finances of the Kano emirate and then decided to follow this up by carving it into four places in a bid to reduce the emir's influence.

According to political insiders, Governor Ganduje is not happy about the fact that the emir backed his political rival during the last Kano State gubernatorial elections. After the anti-graft commission submitted its report, the governor began considering suspending the emir after it was reported that the monarch misappropriated N3.5bn ($9.4m) between 2014 and 2017.

Over recent months, the two parties have been involved in s series of bitter legal battles but last week, Emir Sanusi won a court ruling in which the creation of additional emirates were considered illegal. In what appears to now be a softening of stances on both sides, the emir has accepted the surprise offer of Governor Ganduje to chair the Kano State Co7ncil of traditional rulers.

In a letter dated December 20 and signed on behalf of Kano Emirates Council by its secretary Alhaji Abba Yusuf, Emir Sanusi agreed to work with the governor. Emir Sanusi disassociated himself from a previous letter in which it was said he asked for clarification about what the role would entail.