Uneasy calm as El-Rufai names Bamali new emir of Zazzau

Makarfi, others seek support for new emir
Governor Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna State has announced Alhaji Ahmed Bamali as the new Emir of Zazzau to succeed the late Shehu Idris.

The announcement put paid to speculations that Zazzau Emirate might be split into three. The conjecture followed the delay in announcing a new monarch.

The appointment of Bamali was, however, greeted by uneasy calm as Zaria was palpably devoid of jubilation and fanfare that usually followed such declaration.

A Government House statement signed by the Commissioner for Local Government Affairs, Ja’afaru Sani, yesterday confirmed the appointment of Bamali.

The statement read: “The Governor of Kaduna State, El-Rufai, has approved the appointment of Alhaji Ahmed Nuhu Bamali as the 19th Emir of Zazzau. He succeeds Alhaji Shehu Idris, who died on Sunday, September 20, 2020 after reigning for 45 years.

“Bamali is the first emir from the Mallawa Ruling House in 100 years, following the demise in 1920 of his grandfather, Emir Dan Sidi. Until his appointment as Emir of Zazzau, Bamali held the title of Magajin Garin Zazzau and served as Nigeria’s ambassador to Thailand, with concurrent accreditation to Myanmar.”

THE statement noted that the new emir had been a permanent commissioner in the Kaduna State Independent Electoral Commission.

Bamali was also an executive director of a bank and later acting managing director of the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Corporation (NSPMC).

“He was an employee of the Abuja Metropolitan Management Agency before becoming the head of Human Resources at MTel, the mobile communications arm of the old Nigerian Telecommunications Limited (NITEL),” the statement added.

Born in 1966, Bamali studied Law at the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, and holds a master’s degree in International Relations and Diplomacy and a diploma in Organisational Leadership from Oxford University.

He is also a fellow on Conflict Resolution of the University of York, United Kingdom (UK).

El-Rufai congratulated the new emir and wished him a successful and peaceful reign.

SIMILARLY, a former governor of Kaduna State, Ahmed Makarfi, has hailed the appointment of Bamali and urged the people to support him.

In a statement, Makarfi said he believed the new emir would deploy his wealth of experience to provide purposeful leadership to both the Zazzau emirate and the state’s Council of Chiefs.

“ I am confident the new emir will be a roof large enough to accommodate all shades in the Zazzau Emirate and beyond. I earnestly pray to Allah to grant the emir the energy, good health, perseverance and wisdom to discharge this onerous responsibility. I also pray for Allah’s continued guidance and protection for the emir,” Makarfi said.

In his reaction, a contender and crown prince (Yeriman Zauzau), Alhaji Munir Ja’afaru, appealed for calm and support for the new emir.

Ja’afaru, in a statement, said: “May Allah make it the best. I am impressed with you, the new king of Zauzau, may Allah make you a blessing to the people.”

Ja’afaru was the crown prince to the throne when the late emir, Shehu Idris, died. He waited for 45 years, after been declared too young as emir at the age of 19.

Recall that Bamali’s name was not included in the first kingmakers’ list of three candidates submitted to the governor, from among whom he was expected to approve one as new emir. El-Rufai, however, rejected the list and directed the kingmakers to include all contenders in a new list.

The kingmakers complied and presented a fresh list of 11 candidates to the governor.

The three candidates earlier nominated by the kingmakers were the Yariman Zazzau, Munir Jaafaru, from the Bari Bari Ruling House; the Iyan Zazzau, Bashir Aminu, from Katsina Ruling House; and the eldest son of the immediate past emir, the Turakin Zazzau, Aminu Idris, also from Katsina Ruling House.

On the uneasy calm that followed the announcement by El-Rufai, some observers in Kaduna metropolis said the delay in the pronouncement and controversies over the successor might have killed the excitement and jubilation that usually characterised such declaration.