Ado Bayero
CFR,
LLD
Legum Doctor (Latin: “teacher of the laws”) (LL.D.) or, in English, Doctor of Laws, is a doctorate-level academic degree in law or an honorary degree, depending on the jurisdiction. The double “L” in the abbreviation#Plural forms, abbrev ...
,
JP (25 July 1930 – 6 June 2014) was the
Emir of Kano
Emir (; ar, أمير ' ), sometimes transliterated amir, amier, or ameer, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or ceremo ...
from 1963 to 2014.
Early life
Lineage
Ado Bayero was born on 25 July 1930 into the royal family of the Fulani
Sullubawa
''For the Arab Hutaymi tribe, see Sulluba''
The Sullubawa are a Fulani clan that historically featured prominently in the Fulani War which founded the Sokoto Caliphate. The ruling dynastic houses of Kano Emirate and Katsina Emirate; as well as t ...
clan that has ruled over the
Emirate of Kano since 1819. His father was
Abdullahi Bayero and mother Hajiya Hasiya.
He was the eleventh child of his father and the second of his mother. At the age of seven, he was sent to live with Maikano Zagi.
His father reigned for 27 years.
Muhammadu Sanusi I
Alhaji Sir Muhammadu Sanusi I, KBE was the Acting Governor of Northern Nigeria (1957) and Emir of Kano from 1954 to 1963. He was the eldest son of Emir Abdullahi Bayero. He was a powerful Emir that had substantial influence in the colonial Northe ...
who was Ado Bayero's half brother ruled after their father from 1953 to 1963. Following his dethronement in 1963,
Muhammadu Inuwa ascended the throne for three months.
Early life and education
He started his education in
Kano
Kano may refer to:
Places
*Kano State, a state in Northern Nigeria
* Kano (city), a city in Nigeria, and the capital of Kano State
**Kingdom of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between the 10th and 14th centuries
**Sultanate of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between ...
studying Islam, after which he attended Kano Middle School (
Rumfa College, Kano
Rumfa College is a High school located in the Northern part of Nigeria in Kano State, Founded in 1927 as a Kano Middle School then changed to Kano Province School, it later was renamed to Government College Kano, and is now named Rumfa College, K ...
). He graduated from the School of Arabic Studies in 1947. He then worked as a bank clerk for the
Bank of British West Africa
Bank of British West Africa (BBWA) was a British Overseas bank that was important in introducing modern banking into the countries that emerged from the UK's West African colonies. In 1957 it changed its name to Bank of West Africa, and in 1965 wa ...
until 1949, when he joined the Kano Native Authority. He attended Zaria Clerical College in 1952.
In 1954, he won a seat to the
Northern regional House of Assembly
House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level.
Historically, in British Crown colonies as the colony gained more internal responsible governme ...
.
He was head of the Kano Native Authority police division from 1957 until 1962, during which he tried to minimize the practice of briefly detaining individuals and political opponents on the orders of powerful individuals in Kano. He then became the Nigerian Ambassador to Senegal, during this time he enrolled in a French language class.
Reign
Accession
After the death of Emir
Muhammadu Inuwa who ruled for three months only, Ado Bayero was crowned the Emir of Kano on October 22, 1963, becoming the 13th
Fulani
The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people ( ff, Fulɓe, ; french: Peul, links=no; ha, Fulani or Hilani; pt, Fula, links=no; wo, Pël; bm, Fulaw) are one of the largest ethnic groups in the Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. ...
Emir of Kano and the
56th ruler of
Kano
Kano may refer to:
Places
*Kano State, a state in Northern Nigeria
* Kano (city), a city in Nigeria, and the capital of Kano State
**Kingdom of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between the 10th and 14th centuries
**Sultanate of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between ...
.
1960s
Bayero became emir during the first republic, at a time when Nigeria was going through rapid social and political changes and regional, sub-regional and ethnic discord was increasing. In his first few years, two pro-Kano political movements gained support among some Kano elites. The
Kano People's Party
The Kano Peoples Party was a Nigerian political party in the first republic. Formed in 1963, it soon became the second largest opposition party in Northern Nigeria overtaking the United Middle Belt Congress. In 1966, the Party was proscribed a ...
emerged during the reign of
Muhammadu Inuwa and supported the deposed Emir Sanusi, but it soon evaporated. The Kano State Movement emerged towards the end of 1965 and favored more economic autonomy for the province.
The death in 1966 of many political agitators from northern Nigeria, and the subsequent establishment of a unitary state, consolidated a united front in the northern region but also resulted in a spate of violence there, including in Kano. Bayero's admirers credit him with bringing calm and stability during this and later crises in Kano.
1970s
The constitutional powers of the emir were whittled down by the military regimes between 1966 and 1979. The Native Authority Police and Prisons Department was abolished, the emir's judicial council was superseded by another body, and local government reforms in 1968, 1972, and 1976 reduced the powers of the emir.
1980s
During the second republic, he witnessed hostilities from the
People's Redemption Party
The People's Redemption Party is a social democratic political party in Nigeria. The Second Republic reincarnation of the Northern Elements Progressive Union and the Fourth Republican reincarnation of a similar namesake, the party was create ...
led government of
Abubakar Rimi
Alhaji Muhammadu Abubakar Rimi (1940 – 4 April 2010) was a Nigerian politician who was the Governor of Kano State during the Nigerian Second Republic. He also served as Federal Minister of Communications from 1993 to 1995 during the military r ...
.
Bayero's Palace plays host to official visits by many government personnel and foreigners, but in 1981 Governor
Abubakar Rimi
Alhaji Muhammadu Abubakar Rimi (1940 – 4 April 2010) was a Nigerian politician who was the Governor of Kano State during the Nigerian Second Republic. He also served as Federal Minister of Communications from 1993 to 1995 during the military r ...
restricted traditional homage paid by village heads to Ado Bayero and excised some domains from his emirate.
In 1984, a travel ban was placed on the emir and his friend
Okunade Sijuwade
Alayeluwa Oba Okunade Sijuwade, or Sijuade, (1 January 1930 – 28 July 2015) was the fiftieth Nigerian traditional rulers, traditional ruler or ''Ooni'' of Ife from 1980 to his death in 2015, taking the regnal name Olubuse II.
Ife is a traditio ...
. Although the military are sometimes seen as relying on traditional rulers for support, many
military regimes in the past reduced the powers of traditional rulers such as Bayero.
Later years
As emir, he became a patron of Islamic scholarship and embraced Western education as a means to succeed in a modern Nigeria. He was a vocal critic of the terrorist group
Boko Haram
Boko Haram, officially known as ''Jamā'at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da'wah wa'l-Jihād'' ( ar, جماعة أهل السنة للدعوة والجهاد, lit=Group of the People of Sunnah for Dawah and Jihad), is an Islamic terrorist organization ...
and strongly opposed their campaign against western education. On 19 January 2013, he survived an assassination attempt blamed on the Islamist group which left two of his sons injured and his driver and bodyguard dead, among others. A prime suspect confessed to have participated in the attack on the Emir's motorcade and so many other co-ordinated attacks in the state which led to the arrest of six others.
Death and succession
On 6 June 2014, after fifty-one years on the throne, Ado Bayero died in his palace
Gidan Rumfa
The Gidan Rumfa, sometimes called the Gidan Sarki ("Emir's house"), is the palace of the Emir of Kano. Located in the city of Kano, Kano State, Nigeria, it was constructed in the late 15th century. Since the reign of Rumfa, it has continuously bee ...
.
A bitter succession struggle over who'd succeed him emerged within the royal family between the Bayero and Sanusi houses. His eldest son and heir,
Sanusi Ado Bayero
Sanusi Lamido Ado Bayero (born 1 April 1956) is the eldest son of Ado Bayero and the brother of current Emir Aminu Ado Bayero. He was the Chiroma (Crown Prince) of Kano from 1990 to 2015; and was titled Wambai (a prestigious title) of Kan ...
was considered the natural successor and initial reports announced him as Emir. On 8 June 2014, his grand nephew
Sanusi Lamido Sanusi
Sanusi Lamido Sanusi (Ajami: سنوسي لاميط سنوسي, ''Muhammadu Sanusi na biyu''; born 31 July 1961), known by the religious title Khalifa Sanusi II (Ajami: خليفة السنوسي), is a spiritual leader in the Tijanniyah Sufi ord ...
was crowned Emir of Kano. His son, Sanusi Ado in protest decided to leave Kano and in 2015, he was stripped of all his titles, after refusing to pay allegiance to Emir Sanusi Lamido Sanusi.
Legacy
Bayero was the longest-serving emir in Kano's history. He was seen as one of Nigeria's most prominent and revered Muslim leaders who was a successful businessman and had worked as a banker, police officer, MP and diplomat. Ado Bayero was the
13th Fulani
The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people ( ff, Fulɓe, ; french: Peul, links=no; ha, Fulani or Hilani; pt, Fula, links=no; wo, Pël; bm, Fulaw) are one of the largest ethnic groups in the Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. ...
Emir since the
Fulani War
The Fulani War of 1804–1808, also known as the Fulani Jihad or Jihad of Usman dan Fodio, was a military conflict in present-day Nigeria and Cameroon. The war began when Usman Dan Fodiyo, a prominent Islamic scholar and teacher, was exiled ...
of
Usman dan Fodio
Usman Ɗan Fodio ( ar, عثمان بن فودي, translit=ʿUthmān ibn Fodio; 15 December 1754 – 20 April 1817) was a Fulani scholar, Sunni Islamic religious teacher, revolutionary, and philosopher who founded the Sokoto Caliphate and ruled ...
, when the Fulani took over the
Hausa
Hausa may refer to:
* Hausa people, an ethnic group of West Africa
* Hausa language, spoken in West Africa
* Hausa Kingdoms, a historical collection of Hausa city-states
* Hausa (horse) or Dongola horse, an African breed of riding horse
See also
* ...
city-states. He was one of the strongest and most powerful emirs in the history of the Hausa land. He was renowned for his abundant wealth, maintained by means of stock market investments and large-scale agricultural entrepreneurship both at home and abroad.
References
*BBC, Nigeria: ''The Rioting in Kano'', The British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, July 13, 1981.
*"Alhaji (dr.) Ado Bayero: 40 Years of Service to Humanity", Daily Trust, October 13, 2003.
*http://saharareporters.com/news-page/emir-kano-dead
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bayero, Ado
Emirs of Kano
Ambassadors of Nigeria to Senegal
1930 births
2014 deaths
Rumfa College alumni