‘Nigeria Glorifies Thieves, Rewards Corrupt Politicians With Appointments’, Says Emir Sanusi II

The 16th Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, has issued a scathing critique of Nigeria’s political culture, saying that the country now glorifies material wealth at the expense of values, integrity, and public accountability.

Speaking on Wednesday night during an interview on Channels Television’s ‘Politics Today’, the outspoken monarch said Nigeria has eroded its core value system, rewarding corrupt individuals with positions of power rather than holding them accountable.

“The entire value system of the country has been eroded. We have been ruled by people who have no values, no name behind them, and no desire to leave a name after them,” Sanusi said.

He lamented that public office in Nigeria has become a tool for self-enrichment rather than national service, with those who steal from the commonwealth often celebrated rather than condemned.

“These are people who define themselves by how many houses they own, how many private jets they have, how much money they have in the bank,” he said.

“It is not important to them that people look at them and only see thieves, they see criminals, they see people who have taken the commonwealth.”

The former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) warned that Nigeria’s glorification of wealth, regardless of its source, has entrenched a system where impunity thrives, and corruption is rewarded.

“A society in which material wealth, no matter how you get it, is respected, is glorified, where people who are known to have stolen money get rewarded with ministerial, senatorial appointments, that society will continue to reproduce itself.”

Sanusi II further criticised the moral decay in governance, attributing it in part to poor upbringing and weak institutions. According to him, many public officials lack proper values and enter politics primarily to amass wealth.

“We don’t have a sense of disgust for people who hold public office and amass wealth,” he said.

“We reward them with appointments, with more public offices, and more opportunities to amass wealth and this is what Nigeria has become.
Many people go into government to make money, but you don’t go into government to make money.”

Reflecting on the legacy of late Head of State, General Murtala Muhammed, Sanusi II said Nigeria must pursue a moral rebirth and restore integrity in public life. But he warned that this responsibility could not rest on the president or governors alone.

“I think we need an entire regeneration of values. It is not about one person. The president or the governors, or the ministers cannot on their own change this country,” he said.

The emir also blamed politicians for weakening the Nigerian civil service, arguing that a compromised bureaucracy has left civil servants unable to resist political interference.

“We must return to strengthening institutions that uphold accountability and integrity,” Emir Sanusi II added.