Kano Attorney General Clarifies Appeal Court Ruling On Emirship Dispute.
The Kano State Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General, Barrister Haruna Isa Dederi, has reaffirmed that the recent ruling by the Court of Appeal in Abuja has not invalidated the reinstatement of Muhammadu Sanusi II as the 16th Emir of Kano.
Speaking to journalists on Friday, Dederi emphasised that the landmark verdict delivered on 10 January 2025, which upheld the Kano State Government’s authority to reappoint Sanusi, remains binding. He asserted that the Court of Appeal does not have the power to overturn its own ruling.
Clarification on the Appeal Court’s Ruling
The Attorney General’s statement follows the Court of Appeal’s decision to maintain the status quo while awaiting the Supreme Court’s final judgment. This ruling was in response to an application for a stay of execution filed by Alhaji Aminu Baba Dan Agundi, a kingmaker loyal to the 15th Emir of Kano, Alhaji Aminu Ado Bayero.
Dederi clarified that the case is now “functus officio”, meaning only the Supreme Court has the authority to overturn the ruling of the Court of Appeal.
“The Appeal Court today, after hearing their application for a stay of execution, ruled that the status quo should rather be maintained as it is now until after the judgment of the Supreme Court. They have filed an appeal at the Supreme Court,” he explained.
He further stressed:
“It doesn’t mean that the judgment delivered on 10 January 2025 has been quashed. That judgment is still standing and subsisting. The Court of Appeal cannot reverse its own decision. It is not possible. Only the Supreme Court has the power to set aside the judgment given by a lower court.”
Background of the Legal Dispute
On 10 January 2025, a three-member panel of the Court of Appeal, led by Justice Mohammad Mustapha, set aside an earlier ruling by Justice A. Liman of the Federal High Court in Kano. The lower court had nullified actions taken by the Kano State Government under the **Kano State Emirate Council (Repeal) Law 2024**, including the reappointment of Sanusi Lamido Sanusi as Emir.
Dissatisfied with the verdict, Dan Agundi proceeded to the Supreme Court in an attempt to overturn the lower court’s decision. He also sought a stay of execution of Justice Mustapha’s ruling pending the Supreme Court’s final judgment on the matter.
As the legal battle continues, the Kano State Government maintains that Sanusi’s reinstatement remains valid until the Supreme Court delivers its verdict.
