Appeal Court halts enforcement of judgment upholding reinstatement of Sanusi as Emir of Kano

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has halt the enforcement of its January 10 judgment, which upheld the Kano State Government’s decision to repeal the 2019 Emirate Council Law.

The ruling of the court by implication implies fall short of affirming the reinstatement of Sanusi Lamido Sanusi as the 16th Emir of Kano, which indicates that decision on his reinstatement has to wait for the Nigeria ‘ s apex court, the Supreme Court’ s pronouncements.

In his ruling Friday, the court also set aside the June 20 order of the Federal High Court in Kano, which nullified the Kano State Government’s actions under the Kano State Emirate Council (Repeal) Law 2024, these actions included dissolving the five emirates created in 2019 and the reinstatement of Sanusi II as Emir.

The Kano State Government been dissatisfied with the ruling and had taken the case to the Supreme Court and also sought an injunction from the Court of Appeal to stop the execution of the judgment.

The three-member panel of justices, led by Justice Okon Abang, granted the request in two separate suits filed by Aminu Babba Dan (Sarkin Dawaki Babba) against the Kano State Government, the Speaker of the House of Assembly, the Inspector General of Police, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, and other security agencies.

Read also: Sanusi Lamido Sanusi back as Emir of Kano

Babba Dan, in his application filed on February 6, 2025, sought an order stopping the enforcement of the appellate court’s January 10 judgment, while the case was still pending at the Supreme Court.

His prays include that the trial court lacked jurisdiction, and that his fundamental rights were at risk, as well as that the ruling should not be enforced until the Supreme Court decides.

He also argued that the Kano State Emirate Council (Repeal) Law 2024, which dissolved the new emirates and reinstated Sanusi II, was unlawfully enacted by the Kano State House of Assembly and signed by the governor.

Justice Abang, while delivering the judgment, stated that the court should maintain the prevailing status before the Federal High Court’s decision on June 13, 2024.
The court held that since an appeal was already before the Supreme Court, it was necessary to preserve the case’s subject matter.

The ruling then went ahead to restrain the Kano State Government and other respondents from enforcing the January 10 judgment and ordered that the situation remain unchanged until the Supreme Court’s final decision.

The Court of Appeal’s January 10 judgment had previously overturned a ruling by the Federal High Court in Kano, which declared the Kano State Emirate Council (Repeal) Law 2024 as null and void.

The appellate court held that chieftain matters fall under the jurisdiction of state high courts, not federal courts, and with the case now before the Supreme Court, the Kano Emirate dispute remains unresolved.