“I have seen the news that our father, His Highness Khalifa Muhammad Sanusi II, has asked Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf to pay compensation to traders whose shops were demolished at Idi Ground, Kofar Mata, Kano”.
Sanusi Lamido, represented by Ibrahim Mai Bushira, made this call at a special prayer session organized by the affected traders. According to Mai Bushira, Sanusi has already written a letter to Governor Abba demanding compensation and alternative shops for those traders.
*I, Comrade Ibrahim Muhammad Sani, I stand fully with Sanusi Lamido on this.*
Let me say it clearly: What Governor Abba did at Idi Ground in 2023 was wrong. Very wrong. And until today, that wrong has not been corrected.
*WHAT HAPPENED AT IDI?*
When Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf came in May 2023, in his first two weeks, he brought bulldozers in the midnight and demolished shops, plazas, and properties at Idi Ground, Kofar Mata and other places in Kano.
Who were the owners? Not thieves. Not foreigners. Kano traders. Our brothers who took loans from Jaiz Bank, from Al-Baraka, from family to build small shops.
Some paid N3 million, N5 million, N10 million to Kano government or to previous allottees with valid papers. They had C of O, they had receipts.
Abba did not give them court notice. He did not give them time to remove their goods. He came at night and crushed everything. Goods worth billions of Naira were destroyed. Many traders collapsed. One or two even died of heart attack.
For over 3 years now, they have not been compensated.
*WHY SANUSI IS RIGHT AND WHY ABBA MUST PAY:*
*1. Islam says so, Tradition says so, Law says so:*
In Islam, if you destroy someone’s property unjustly, you must pay diyya (compensation). In Kano tradition, Sarki is the father of all. Sarki protects traders. In Nigerian law, Section 44 of Constitution says if government acquires your property, it MUST pay compensation. So Sanusi is not doing politics. He is doing what a good Sarki should do.
*2. This is not about politics, it is about justice:*
Some people will say “Those shops were illegal, Ganduje sold public land.” Okay, if they were illegal, who sold it to them? Government. So government must refund them. You cannot sell land to someone today, collect money, and another governor comes tomorrow to demolish it and says “It was illegal.” That is fraud by government against its own people.
If Ganduje did wrong by selling, then prosecute Ganduje. Don’t punish the poor trader who bought it.
*3. Governance is continuity:*
Abba Kabir Yusuf is Governor of Kano, not Governor of Kwankwasiyya only. If Ganduje allocated Idi, and you think it is wrong, you revoke it through court, with notice, with compensation, with alternative. You don’t bring bulldozer at 2am like you are fighting war.
*4. Traders are suffering:*
I have met some of the Idi victims. Some are now doing achaba (okada). Some are in Tarauni market begging for space. Some have run away to Abuja. Their children are out of school. How can we have a government that claims to be pro-Talaka but destroys Talaka’s shops?
*MY CALL TO GOVERNOR ABBA KABIR YUSUF:*
Your Excellency, you are my Governor. I voted for you. But on this Idi issue, you are wrong.
I join my voice with His Highness Sanusi Lamido:
*A. Pay compensation immediately.* Set up independent committee with traders, Kano Chamber of Commerce, NBA, and Emirate Council to assess losses and pay.
*B. Give them alternative shops.* You are building new shops at different places. Give them first right.
*C. Apologize.* Yes, apologize to them. Leadership is not about gra-gra. It is about humility. Say “Kano State Government apologizes for the manner of demolition.”
If you do this, history will forgive you. If you don’t, history will write that you, Abba, destroyed Kano traders’ livelihood and refused to compensate them even when Sarki told you to.
Sanusi Lamido has spoken as a father. He has written a letter. Will you listen, Abba? Or will you allow Yan Dangwale around you to tell you “Don’t mind Sanusi”?
The same traders you demolished are the same people who will vote in 2027. They have not forgotten.
*FINAL WORD TO TRADERS:*
Continue your special prayers. Your prayers will reach Allah. No government is bigger than justice. Your shops may be gone, but your right is not gone.
I, Comrade Ibrahim Muhammad Sani, am with you. I am not with any party on this. I am with justice.
If Abba pays compensation, I will clap for Abba. If he does not, I will continue to shout.
*Comrade Ibrahim Muhammad Sani*
_Youth Advocate / Public Affairs Analyst_
