Katsina Emir tells Tinubu campaign chief Yari: stop deceiving Nigerians

The Emir of Katsina, Alhaji Abdulmumini Kabir Usman, has told Senator Abdulaziz Yari, who is leading President Bola Tinubu's 2027 re-election campaign, to stand for the truth and stop deceiving Nigerians about the state of the country.

The monarch spoke when Yari, Director-General of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council, visited his palace in Katsina this week. A Hausa-language video of the meeting has been circulating online.

According to reports of the video, the Emir said leadership should be about the welfare of ordinary people, not political calculation. "We are all children of this nation, and we must stand for the truth," he told Yari.

Farmers, schools and factories

The Emir said insecurity has kept farmers off their land, and that many schools in Katsina have closed because of banditry. Leadership reported that he said farmers in 12 local government areas were finding it hard to reach their farms.

He also asked why factories that once employed northerners, including the Peugeot plant and DIC in Kaduna, had collapsed. "Where are we in the North-West? We have to talk," Daily Post quoted him as saying.

His concern matters to ordinary Nigerians because farming feeds the country and employs millions. When farmers cannot plant, food prices rise for every household.

The Emir also warned against politicians who seek prayers and support at traditional palaces before elections and disappear afterwards. "Every four years you come to my palace with cap in hand, asking for prayers, asking for support. After election, you disappear to Abuja, to Lagos," Leadership quoted him as saying.

He said politics should be about persuasion and listening to opposing views, not insults or tearing rivals down. "Politics is not madness," Daily Post quoted him. "Whoever you are, if you humiliate another person, you may eventually experience what you would not wish for yourself."

On honesty, the Emir asked Yari directly whether it was right to make promises he knew he could not keep, warning that Allah would question such actions.

What happens next

Leadership reported that Yari's delegation included Governor Dikko Umaru Radda of Katsina, former Governor Aminu Bello Masari and other political figures. They also visited the Emir of Daura before leaving the state.

The visits show traditional rulers still carry weight as the 2027 campaigns gather pace. Whether the warnings change how the campaign speaks to Nigerians will be watched closely in the north, where insecurity and the cost of living are pressing concerns.