Aside from the issue of insubordination which was used by the Kano State government to depose Sanusi Lamido Sanusi as Emir of Kano, the erstwhile governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) fell out of favour with the northern elites when he began to attack them.
There are issues Sanusi had harped on over the years that incensed the north against him.
1. 87 per cent of Poverty in Nigeria is from the North
Sanusi have not hidden his disgust for the northern leaders for impoverishing its people.
During the 60th birthday celebration of Kaduna State governor, Mallam Nasir El- Rufai, Sanusi took a swipe at the leaders of the north for doing nothing about the poverty rate in the region.
2. 13 Million Children out of school come from the north
He berated the illiteracy in the north and blamed the northern leaders for not educating their children.
He said, “The rest of the country cannot be investing in educating their children, producing graduates and when they graduate, they can’t get jobs because they come from a certain part of the country.”
He said the north’s over-reliance on quota system and federal character would destroy it. He said a day would come when there would be a constitutional amendment that would address the quota system and federal character and the north would be left in the doldrums.
3. 9 states in the North contributes 50 per cent of the malnutrition problem in the country
Sanusi took a jibe at the leaders of the north for not taking the nutritional needs of their children seriously, which he blamed on the high rate of poverty in the North.
4. Drug Problems
He said no leader would be happy while it’s youth is being ravaged by drugs
5. Boko Haram Problems
He said if the North does not do something urgent, the insurgency in the north would destroy it.
6. Almajiri Problem
According to Sanusi, the Almajiri problem is a huge challenge to the north. He said it has remained a breeding ground for Boko Haram and banditry in the North. He blamed it on parental irresponsibility.
7. Girl Child Education
He took a swipe at a system that subjugates its women and girls and has constantly harped on the education of the girl child in the north.
Whatever it is worth, he had remained a thorn in the flesh of the northern elites whom he constantly berated for causing most of the problems in the region.
