Kano State Commissioner of Police, AIG Usaini Gumel, has spurned Governor Abba Yusuf’s directive to the State’s Police Command to evict the deposed Emir of Kano, Alhaji Aminu Ado Bayero, from the mini palace in Nasarawa part of the metropolis where he currently resides.
The governor’s order, conveyed through the State’s Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice, Haruna Dederi, was issued on Thursday night.
But, in a telephone interview, AIG Gumel explained that complying with the eviction order would be premature, as the government itself had filed a case at the State High Court regarding the matter and the hearing was scheduled for Monday, June 24, 2024. He emphasised that executing the eviction order would be like “jumping the gun,” as the outcome of the court case was still pending.
“The police will not evict Aminu Ado Bayero because the same government has filed a case at the State High Court on the eviction order, which would come up on Monday, 24th June 2024. So, if we carry out the order, it is like we are pre-empting the court because we don’t know what will happen at the court,” Gumel stated.
Security has been heightened around the Nasarawa mini palace, with additional personnel deployed to the area. All major routes leading to the palace have been blocked by security personnel. Despite the governor’s directive, Bayero remains in the mini palace, in company of his guards and supporters.
The refusal of the police to evict Bayero has heightened tensions in Kano State, as the power tussle over the Kano throne between the State government and the deposed emir continues to unfold.
This is the second time the State’s Police Command will disobey the governor’s directive. Recall that about four weeks ago, Governor Yusuf had ordered the Police to arrest Bayero for daring to enter Kano city despite his dethronement, but the Police Command ignored the order.
The development prompted the Kano State government to accuse the Police of taking sides by taking orders from powers-that-be outside the State instead of the elected governor of the State, who is the chief security officer of the State.