Nigerian leaders treat public office as family business — Emir Sanusi

Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi, has accused Nigeria’s political elite of deliberately undermining the country’s development by treating public office as a personal and family enterprise.

Speaking on Wednesday at the 15th anniversary celebration of Enough is Enough (EiE) Nigeria in Lagos, Sanusi said the political class has repeatedly squandered national opportunities because its priorities are self-serving.

“We have done enough damage, and maybe we need to stop. Sometimes these are not just missed opportunities; they are deliberately missed opportunities,”  he told the audience.

He argued that the root of Nigeria’s stagnation lies in how those in power understand governance.

“The reason we miss these opportunities is that we have people who think public office is about themselves, it’s about their families, it’s about people close to them. It’s not about the country, but public office is about the citizens,” he said.

Sanusi, a former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), urged young Nigerians to reject what he described as a dysfunctional system built on division and self-interest.

He encouraged citizens to take ownership of the nation and define a new direction for its future.

“As citizens, each and every one of us must remember that the nation belongs to us. It does not belong to the government; it does not belong to politicians. We own this country,” he said.

He called on the youth to unite across ethnic and religious lines and craft a clear, realistic ideological roadmap for a more equitable Nigeria.

“It has to be a Nigeria different from the one that has been manufactured for us — a Nigeria of ethnic rivalries, religious conflicts, and competition for aggrandizement. It has to be a country that realises its potential in the committee of nations,” Sanusi said.