Apparently sensing danger ahead, the Kano State Police Command has issued an order banning all Durbar activities throughout the State for the upcoming Eid-el-Kabir (Sallah) celebrations as part of enhanced security measures to ensure public safety and peace in the State during the festive period.
In a statement released on Thursday by the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Abdullahi Haruna Kiyawa, the Police Command said the ban on Durbar activities, a significant traditional events post-Eid-el-Kabir, followed extensive security reports and consultations with relevant stakeholders.
“This measure is taken as a result of series of security reports obtained and wide consultations made with relevant security stakeholders to ensure the safety of the larger community,” the Command explained.
This is the first time the durbar has been cancelled since the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The three-day durbar is the largest festival in the state with a splendid display of horseback riding and cultural activities that always draw a large crowd from within and outside Kano State.
The event is usually hosted by the Emir of Kano.
Despite the restriction on Durbar activities, the Command has, however, advised worshippers to proceed with their Eid prayers at designated Eid prayer grounds as done in previous years.
Worshippers are advised to conduct their normal Eid Prayers at the various designated Eid praying grounds, traditionally done in the past,” the statement noted.
The Command urged residents to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity to the nearest Police Station.
The statement emphasised the importance of continued collaboration and cooperation from all stakeholders to maintain a secure environment.
“Adequate security deployments have been put in place to ensure no breakdown of law and order in all parts of the State before, during, and after the festive period,” the statement assured.
This latest development comes on the backdrop of a request by the deposed 15th Emir of Kano, Aminu Ado Bayero, to the State’s Police Command, asking for special security arrangements for him to host the upcoming Eid-el-Kabir festivities in Kano Emirate in a letter addressed to the Commissioner of Police dated June 10, 2024.
Bayero was dethroned by the Kano State government about three weeks ago, and in his place, the 14th Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, was reinstated by Governor Abba Yusuf. The former has, however, refused to let go and continued to lay claim to the Kano throne from a mini palace in the commercial city, a development that has put Kano on the edge ever since.
Both Sanusi II and Bayero have continued to hold courts and conduct ceremonial activities from their separate palaces in the state amid a legal tussle to outdo each other.