EMIR of Kano Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi II has tied the knot with his rumoured heartthrob the 18-year old  Sa’adatu Barkindo-Musdafa who is the daughter of the Lamido of Adamawa Muhammadu Barkindo-Musdafa. 

Following the secret wedding yesterday, Sa’adatu, who recently completed secondary school and has been enrolled for advanced level studies, becomes the emir’s fourth wife. Emir Sanusi already has three wives including his first wife, Sadiya, who is the daughter of the late emir of Kano, Ado Bayero, Maryam and Rakiya. 

Held in Yola on Friday, the wedding fatiha took place inside the palace of the Lamido minutes after Jumma’at prayer. Palace sources in Yola said that the influential emir only sent out invitations to few dignitaries across the country and Kano government officials sneaked into Yola to avoid journalists. 

Kano State governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, was said to have acted as the guardian for the groom, while his Adamawa counterpart, Jibrilla Bindow, played the role of the bride’s guardian, who gave her hand out in marriage to the monarch. One top Kano state government official who travelled to Yola, said that Islam allows having a maximum of four wives for those who can treat all of them equally and provide for a large family. 

Social commentator, Dan’Almajiri Ibrahim, said: “The engagement of the Adamawa princess to Emir Sanusi II may also be a move to deepen royal bond between Adamawa and Kano. You see, historically, both emirates have similar origins in the 19th Century Uthman Bn Fodio’s jihad." 

Emir Sanusi is currently away in Saudi Arabia, where he is acting as leader of Nigeria’s delegation to this year’s hajj. One highly placed palace source confirmed the development to adding that Sa’adatu would not move in with the emir