The Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, has expressed dismay over the state of the Nigerian economy and believes that the country pursued policies that made it destined for bankruptcy.

The former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, however, said those knowledgeable about the Nigerian economy were not surprised.

“Look, I’m known to have spoken for a long time on the economy and to have warned over a decade ago that this is where we’re headed. I don’t think anyone who studied Economics is surprised that Nigeria is where it is today.

“We spent decades pursuing policies that were destined to bankrupt the economy,” Sanusi said on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme on Wednesday, while speaking on the life of the late General Murtala Muhammed, who was Nigeria’s former head of state.

He noted that opinions contrary to such policies were met with resistance.

The monarch said that those who controlled the narrative were the beneficiaries of the system of rent seeking, and therefore, anyone seen as a threat to that system was a target.

“We refuse to listen; every argument, every rational argument against the path that we were following, was met with resistance.

“Those who controlled the narrative were the beneficiaries of this system of rent seeking, and therefore, anyone who was seen as a threat to that system was a target.

“I have faced a lot of persecution for my views, so I’m not surprised at where we are,” he stated.

While recalling the leadership of Murtala Muhammed, Sanusi, however, said that the former military leader was ideologically a bourgeois nationalist.

The former CBN chief said the late head of state pursued policies that did not really confront capitalism, but tried to ensure that the capital in the country was transferred to Nigerians.

The Kano Emir explained, “He was not a socialist. He was not a communist. He was a bourgeois nationalist to the extent that he pursued policies that did not really confront capitalism, but tried to ensure that the capital in the country was transferred to the hands of Nigerians.

“It was part of his anti-colonial struggle. So when you look at the indigenous decrees, when you look at opening up the economy to Nigerians, the idea was to create a Nigerian capitalist class that would take over from imperialism,” he said.

“And, and I think this was his major ideological shift from a neo-colonial system to a bourgeois nationalist system.”

Sanusi extolled the virtues of the late Mohammed, who he said was his guardian.

He described him as a man who influenced him and built his confidence.

According to the monarch, the former military leader’s patriotism was not in doubt.

The late Murtala Muhammed was Nigeria’s head of state from July 1975 to February 1976, when he was killed. (CHANNELS)