FG KICKS AS SANUSI REVEALS HE WON’T HELP TINUBU

The Federal Government on Thursday, January 16, 2025, responded to the Emir of Kano, His Highness Muhammadu Sanusi II, asserting that it does not require his endorsement for what it described as the laudable policies of the administration.

The government also told Sanusi Lamido, who was a former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, to rise above personal interests and partisan undertones and prioritize the greater good of Nigerians.

These admonitions among others were contained in a statement issued by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, in reaction to the recent comments made by the first-class monarch on the economic situation of the country.

The Emir who made the comment on the 21st Memorial Lecture of Chief Gani Fawehimi in Lagos, reportedly said that he will not offer any advice to President Bola Tinubu’s led federal government on how to tackle the economic challenges facing the country.

He was quoted to have said: “I have chosen not to speak on the economy, or reforms or to explain anything because if I explain it, it will help this government. But I don’t want to help this government. They are my friends, but if they don’t behave like friends, I won’t behave like a friend.

Reacting to the comments credited to the Emir, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, in a statement titled: “We don’t need Sanusi’s stamp of approval for our laudable policies,” expressed disappointment at the Emir’s alleged negative comments on the reforms of Tinubu’s administration because of his alleged “shift in loyalty.”

The statement partly read: “It is deeply disappointing that reforms widely recognized as essential by global experts—including by Emir Sanusi II himself—are now being subtly condemned by him because of shift in loyalty. His Highness, given his background in economics, has a unique responsibility to contribute constructively rather than undermine reforms aimed at collective progress because he feel estranged from his “friends” in government.