The Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, has expressed deep concern over what he described as Nigeria’s long-standing misfortune with leadership, stressing that the country has endured “lousy” governance for many years.
Sanusi, a former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), made the remarks on Saturday while speaking at the second edition of the Kano International Poetry Festival (KAPFEST), held in Kano.
According to him, the nation’s progress has been stunted largely due to the caliber of leaders chosen to manage its affairs. He maintained that Nigeria would have slipped into bankruptcy if not for the removal of fuel subsidy by the federal government.
“You rise and fall with the quality of your leadership, and Nigeria has had lousy leadership for a long time. You cannot give what you do not have until we begin to look at the people who we choose to lead us,” the Emir stated.
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He lamented the state of governance, pointing to the quality of debates in the legislature, the trivialities that dominate public discourse, and the time wasted on issues he described as “totally unimportant” and “petty.”
“Many times, you look at the people who are leading you and you say, ‘Oh God, is this really the person? How did we end up here?’ You see it every day in the newspapers, in the news, and in the kind of arguments that dominate national space,” he added.
Sanusi further challenged Nigerian youths to rise to the task of reclaiming the country’s future from the older generation, insisting that they have the numbers and capacity to effect real change.
“With will, the youths could easily retire all the old people managing this country and take over,” he urged.