#EndBadGovernanceInNigeria: Emir Sanusi warns residents against buying stolen property

Emir of Kano, Mallam Muhammadu Sanusi II, has condemned the destruction and looting of public and private property during Thursday’s protest, insisting that the criminal act ought to have been avoided.

Besides, the 16th Emir cautioned residents against purchasing any stolen property found on sale but rather drawing the attention of security agents to apprehend perpetrators of the crime.

Addressing a press conference on Friday at the Emir’s palace, the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) lamented that Kano is the worst hit in the country during the hunger protest that was eventually hijacked by hoodlums.

The Emir specifically cited the attack on the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) Digital Industrial Park, Kano State Print Press, and other public facilities where equipment worth billions of naira was looted and destroyed, insisting such criminality should be discouraged in Kano.

The monarch lamented that the hijackers have taken the economy and development backward, reminding that wasted resources would never add any progress to the growth of Kano.

He, however, appealed to residents to hold firm to the will of God and resist any attempt by the enemies of the state to use them as agents of destruction. The Emir wanted residents to forego the setback and move on, adding that Kano will overcome the recent tribulations.

“Today is a sad day for the people of Kano as we reflect on the events of yesterday. The violence of yesterday was what scholars and leaders kept warning against, the possibility that miscreants and agents of destruction would hijack peaceful demonstrations and use that opportunity to cause mayhem which led to the loss of lives, the destruction of properties, and injuries to countless people.

“As we said during the stakeholders’ meeting, any violence in Kano only hurts Kano, it hurts innocent people. The young people who died are our children, the property that was burnt and stolen belongs to the people of Kano.

“We have set ourselves back. The printing press that was burnt will have to be rebuilt, the machines will have to be bought, and these are funds that could have gone into youth empowerment, poverty alleviation, education, healthcare, and nutrition, and addressing the very problems that we are protesting against.

“The Digital Centre of Excellence that was built by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) was aimed at educating our youth, giving them digital training, preparing them for examinations. I had personally spoken to the minister, and I am aware that the minister was due to come in next week to commission this centre along with the Governor. We have vandalised and destroyed the computers, we have wasted hundreds of millions of naira that was supposed to be invested in human capital,” Sanusi said.

Meanwhile, the 15th Emir of Kano, Aminu Bayero, also called for calm, patience, and continuous prayers to address the economic challenges facing the nation.

Bayero had made the appeal at his Nasarawa Palace, where he received a letter of demands from members of the Kano Coalition for Peace Ambassadors.

Emir Bayero stressed the importance of dialogue in achieving desired goals and assured the coalition that their concerns would be followed up.

He noted that continued engagement and dialogue are key to resolving issues affecting the people.