Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, the Emir of Kano and former head of the Central Bank of Nigeria, has said he did not truly understand poverty until he became a traditional ruler. According to him, his time as Emir opened his eyes to how deeply people are suffering in Nigeria.
Sanusi shared this experience on Saturday, May 31, while speaking at a public lecture in Abuja to celebrate the 60th birthday of former Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi. He said that even though he had worked in high government and finance positions, he didn’t really know what poverty looked like until he visited poor communities as Emir.
At the lecture titled “Weaponization of Poverty as a Means of Underdevelopment: A Case Study of Nigeria,” Sanusi said that many rich and powerful people in Nigeria have no idea how bad things are for ordinary citizens. He admitted, “Even when I worked as an economist and CBN Governor, I only saw numbers. But when I became Emir, I saw real poverty with my own eyes.”
He spoke about what he saw in rural areas — people drinking unsafe water, living in weak houses, and children learning in damaged classrooms with no roofs. He asked whether Nigerian leaders truly care about their people or just enjoy being in power. Sanusi also questioned the country’s priorities, saying big projects like bridges are built in cities, while rural people can’t even get to hospitals. He warned that Nigeria is in a crisis and needs to focus on finding real solutions.
Sanusi called on those in government to care more about the people. He said leaders must stop thinking about themselves and start making policies that help everyone.
Also at the event, Nasir El-Rufai, former Governor of Kaduna State, blamed citizens for voting in leaders who don’t know what to do with power. He said many politicians only care about winning elections but have no plans to fix the country.
Professor Usman Yusuf, former head of the National Health Insurance Scheme, said that most of the problems people bring to hospitals aren’t really about health. Instead, they are caused by poverty, bad leadership, and a lack of basic services. He blamed this on corruption and poor governance. He warned that unless Nigerians start voting more wisely, the country will continue to suffer from underdevelopment.
