Why I married 18- year- old princess as fourth wife —-Sanusi

Love has no boundary and sometimes it has nothing to do with age and even status. This seems to be the response of Emir of Kano, Muhammad Sanusi II, who has just taken a beautiful princess, Sa’adatu Barkindo-Musdafa, from Adamawa as his fourth wife.

In a private e-mail sent to a select people which has leaked to many social media platforms, he explained why he decided to marry Sa’adatu.

“I am sure NC members all have their views and have kept quiet out of (appropriate) deference to our right to make our individual choice. Obviously I do not need to explain anything to anyone in a purely personal matter but a few points are worthy of note:

1. The lady in question is 18 and therefore legally of age to marry under all laws and certainly under Muslim law.

2. She is proceeding for her undergraduate education in the UK in January. She had an A in computer science in her O levels and plans to get a degree in computer science.

3. Each and every one of my wives is a university graduate and some have worked and then stopped and in each case the choice was purely theirs.

4. It is a tradition in Kano that emirs and princes in choosing wives consider issues beyond the individual. The family is in every sense a social unit. My predecessor was married to princesses from Ilorin, Katsina and Sokoto

Read also: End subsidy to end corruption – Sanusi

5. The relationship between the late Lamido of Adamawa Aliyu Musdafa, the father of the current Lamido is well known. Lamido Aliyu was the first emir turbaned after emir Sanusi I and they remained close until Sanusi’s death.

6. My own relationship with the current Lamido dates back to 1981 when he was Ciroma and commissioner for works. By the way the Lamido and I are not illiterates we know what we are doing and he does have a PhD in Engineering.

7. My own mother was married in Adamawa and lived there for more than two decades and I have eight younger brothers and sisters from there.

8. It is therefore natural that if I choose to marry from another kingdom Adamawa would be the first choice for me and I am extremely happy to strengthen these ling historical bonds

9. The young lady in question gave her free consent and even after the contract the wedding will not happen for a few years. By then she may be 21. If she freely consents to this I do not know on what moral grounds anyone has a grouse. She is an adult, she gave her consent, her education is not being in anyway interrupted.

10. The real issue is that people do not accept cultural difference. And you can see it in the approach to these issues. I am supposed to be urbane and western educated; yes but I am not European. I am a northern Nigerian Fulani Muslim brought up in a setting exactly like the one my children are being brought up in.

If you read this and it improves your understanding of this issue that is fine. If it does not just remember it is not your life; it is not your daughter and you are not my wife therefore it is not your business.

I obviously cannot stoop to the level of responding publicly to these kinds of articles. I have always been an advocate of girls marrying after maturing. I personally like the minimum age of 18 even though i understand those who say 16 is fine and indeed this is the law in most so called advanced countries” he said.

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