Congratulations to the good people of Kano on the Supreme Court’s ruling today affirming the victory of NNPP’s Abba Yusuf.
In my November 18 column titled “Tinubu and Ganduje Shouldn’t Play with Fire in Kano,” I pointed out that both the election tribunal and the appeal court did not even pretend to be fair in their judgments against NNPP and that “If the Supreme Court is guided by its precedents, which is never guaranteed, I have no doubt that it will invalidate the judgments of the lower courts.”
I am glad that my prediction has materialized—or that my warning has been heeded.
This is a victory not just for justice but for peace in Kano. Had the broad-day light theft of NNPP’s legitimate electoral mandate been given the imprimatur of the Supreme Court, security forces would probably be working hard right now to contain communal convulsions in Kano.
Kano is my second home. It’s where I earned my most important academic qualification that is the basis for what I am today. So, I have as much emotional investment in its peace and stability as its natives.
My advice to NNPP, Gov. Abba Yusuf, and Rabiu Kwanwaso is to learn to be magnanimous in victory and shun vengeance. You win more hearts through large-heartedness than through revenge and righteous bitterness.
*Kperogi is a Professor of Journalism and Emerging Media at Kennesaw State University, Georgia, United States, and a notable columnist. He can be reached on X, formerly known as Twitter, via: @farooqkperogi
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