The Court of Appeal in Abuja has issued a stay of execution on the reinstatement of Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi II as the Emir of Kano, effectively halting the implementation of a prior judgment that overturned his removal.
A three-member panel of justices, led by Justice Okon Abang, delivered the ruling on Friday, unanimously deciding to suspend the enforcement of the January 10 judgment.
That earlier ruling had set aside the nullification of Sanusi II’s appointment by a Kano State High Court, which it found had acted without the requisite jurisdiction.
The judgment in question, delivered by Justice Gabriel Kolawole, had declared that the Kano State High Court lacked the authority to nullify Sanusi II’s appointment and subsequently directed that the case be transferred back to the state judiciary for proper adjudication.
However, in response to fresh applications seeking a suspension of the judgment’s implementation, the appellate court determined that the motions before it were both legally competent and meritorious.
Consequently, the panel agreed to put the ruling on hold pending the outcome of the appeal currently before the Supreme Court.
The decision represents a critical juncture in the protracted legal battle over the leadership of the Kano Emirate, as stakeholders await the Supreme Court’s final verdict on the matter.
