The Emirate Council amendment bill has passed first and second readings in the Sokoto State House of Assembly.
The amendment bill, if passed into law, will among other things strip the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III, of powers to appoint the kingmakers and to appoint district heads without government approval.
This development comes a day after the Muslim Rights Concern raised concerns about an alleged plan by the Sokoto State Governor, Ahmed Aliyu, to depose the Sultan of Sokoto.
In a statement on Monday, MURIC’s Executive Director, Prof. Isiaq Akintola, raised alarm of the possibility of replicating Kano’s emirate amendment Bill which saw the emirs being deposed, prompting the Vice President Kashim Shettima, to caution against such moves.
The state government, however, denied any plan to dethrone the monarch, describing the allegation as false.
The state Commissioner for Information, Sambo Danchadi, explained that the law guiding the appointment of traditional rulers in the state had not been changed.
