Armed military personnel have taken up positions around the Nasarawa Palace, where the deposed Emir of Kano, Aminu Ado Bayero, has taken up refuge on Saturday following his deposition on Thursday.
The development comes apparently to preempt possible arrest of the embattled Bayero as ordered by Kano State governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf, on Saturday morning.
In the early hours of Saturday, Bayero returned to Kano to a rapturous welcome from his supporters. Following his arrival, he moved into the mini palace on Nasarawa Road, escalating tensions in the state, a development the state government said was a security risk.
Deputy Governor Aminu Abdulsalam Gwarzo, speaking at a press briefing, alleged that former Governor Abdullahi Ganduje was behind Bayero’s defiant reappearance in Kano to cause chaos.
“We know Ganduje is using the office of the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, to provide the deposed Emir with military personnel in order to intimidate and subjugate the people of Kano into accepting what they are not in favour of, and we refuse to tolerate it,” he stated.
Meanwhile, Gwarzo, alongside reinstated Emir Muhammadu Sanusi II and other state government functionaries have remained at the Kano Emir’s Palace in a show of solidarity with the reinstated Emir against what they perceived as undue interference from powers-that-be in Abuja.
Gwarzo expressed disappointment over actions he believed were intended to destabilise the state, adding: “It’s disappointing that they will do such a thing that will cause tension and disrupt the peace in the state.”
The situation in Kano remains uncertainty as the standoff continues. Governor Yusuf administration appeared determined to assert its authority, while supporters of deposed Emir Bayero also remained defiant. The involvement of military personnel has added a complex layer to the already volatile situation.
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