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The Man, The
Bridge
Profile of His Excellency, Alh. Abdullahi Adamu, (Sarkin
Yakin Keffi), the First Executive Governor of Nasarawa
State
Alhaji Abdullahi Adamu, was born on
July 23, 1946 at Keffi. He started his education at the
age of 7 in 1953 at Abdu Zanga Primary School, Keffi and
completed at the Laminga Senior Primary School in 1959.
His Post-Primary education Started at the Government
Secondary School, Makurdi from 1960-1962, from where he
proceeded to Government Technical College Bukuru from
1962-1965.
Because of his strong desire for
western education, and blessed with a sharp calculating
mind, he proceeded to the Kaduna Polytechnic where he
read and obtained a National Diploma in Building and
Civil Engineering and graduated in 1968. While at the
Kaduna Polytechnic, he was elected President of the
Kaduna Polytechnic Students Union Government between
1967/68. At the same time (1967/68) he contested and
won elections as the National Vice-President of the
National Association of Nigerian Students after the
merger of the two National Student bodies – to wit,
National Union of Nigerian Students and National
Association of Technological Students in 1968.
He had a short employment after the
diploma course with the Electricity Corporation of
Nigeria (1967/70) as a maintenance supervisor. Later he
left for a Higher National Diploma at Kaduna Polytechnic
and completed in 1971. After the course, he took up
appointment with the Northern Nigeria Development
Corporation (NNDC) Kaduna, 1972. Thereafter, he moved
to the private sector where in 1973 he became a
Consultant Area Manager with AEK, a firm of consultants
in the Henry Fajimirokum group of Companies. In 1974,
he was appointed Project Manager for the construction of
Durbar Hotel and Murtala Mohammed Square, Kaduna,
edifices which were put in place for the World Black and
African Festival of Arts and Culture (Festac). In 1975,
he was appointed the Executive Secretary of BEPCO
(Benue/Plateau Construction Company) by the
Benue/Plateau State Government. While in BEPCO, he was
also appointed a member of the Board of Directors of the
NTA Zone D in 1976 and served up to 1978. Between1980-83
he served as the Chairman of Benue Cement Company, Gboko.
His career in Politics began in
earnest 1977 when he was elected into the Constituent
Assembly, a body that drafted the country’s Second
Republic Constitution of 1979. Thereafter, he became a
pioneer member of the National Movement which later
metamorphosed into the National Party of Nigeria (NPN).
He was the first Secretary of the Party from December
1978 and later Chairman of the Party in Plateau State
from 1982 up to 1983 when the military terminated the
life of the Second Republic. He also served as a member
of the National Executive Committee of the Party.
In 1980, on the death of his father
and in consideration of his enormous contribution to the
society, he was conferred with the prestigious title of
SARKIN YAKIN KEFFI by His Royal Highness, the
Emir of Keffi, Alhaji Chindo Yamusa II. He therefore
inherited his father’s traditional title.
At the demise of the 2nd
republic in 1983, he went back into the academics and in
1987 enrolled in the pioneer class of the part-time Law
degree of the University of Jos. By 1992, he added yet
another feather to his academic career with an LLB (Hons)
from the University of Jos. He enrolled into Nigeria
Law School, Lagos where he obtained his BL and was
called to the Nigerian bar in December 1993 as a
Solicitor and Advocate of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
He was appointed a member of the
National Constitutional Conference convened by the
General Sani Abacha Administration for the drafting of a
constitution for a new democratic government (the Fourth
Republic), i.e. Alhaji Abdullahi Adamu has been involved
in writing the Nigerian Constitution twice (1979 & 1999
constitutions).
In March 1995, he was appointed a
Minister of State in the Ministry of Works and Housing
of the Federal Republic of Nigeria where he served up to
November 17, 1997. During his tenure, he actively
participated in the UN-sponsored programme for urban
housing, the environment and sustainable development
known as “hatitat II”. He led the Nigeria delegation to
all the Habitat Preparatory conferences at the United
Nations and the main Habitat II conference in Istanbul,
Turkey, in June/July 1996. He was in 1996 elected
Chairman of Shelter Afrique (an OAU Umbrella for housing
development in Africa). He represented Nigeria at the
United Nations heads of state and government conference
to review the charter of the Earth Summit in June1997 in
New York.
At the lifting of the ban on
politics he became a member of the United Nigeria
Congress Party (UNCP) and was one of its leading
gubernatorial contenders in Nasarawa Sate. His efforts
did not materialize as the party, alongside others, was
dissolved at the death of General Sani Abacha. At the
onset of the current political dispensation in 1998, he
became a founding member of the People Democratic Party
(PDP) and contested for the position of the Executive
Governor of Nasarawa State on its platform. He won the
elections conducted on 9th January 1999. He
was subsequently sworn in as the Executive Governor of
Nasarawa State on May 29, 1999.
Governor Abdullahi Adamu assumed
leadership of Nasarawa State with a rich background in
both the public service and private sector.
He has been honoured with the keys
to the cities of Harlem – New York, 1981; Hamburg –
Germany, 1982; Soweto – South Africa, 1995 and the
Plaque of Los Angeles – USA, 2000 by the Los Angeles
County Council.
Governor Adamu is committed to a
total reform of the educational development of Nasarawa
State. He remains the only Governor in Nigeria that has
committed not less than 28% of the state fiscal
appropriation to education. In appreciation of his
educational reform agenda, he was honoured with an
Honourary Doctorate Degree in Engineering by the Rivers
State University of Science and Technology,
Port-Harcourt in March 2003. In the same vein, in
November 2004, the Federal University of Technology,
Akure conferred on him an Honourary Doctorate in
Engineering for his contributions to the field of
Engineering. On the 11th of March, 2006, the
Federal University of Port Harcourt honoured him with
yet another Doctorate of Science degree in Public
Administration, to be followed a week later on 18th
March 2006 with a Doctorate degree in Law by the Nnamdi
Azikwe University, Awka, Anambra State. He has thus
received four doctorate degrees from various
universities in appreciation of his strides in the field
of education.
In addition to the above, His
Excellency had also been conferred with other awards
within our dear country Nigeria. These awards include
the following:
·
Special Merit Award as Distinguished
Personality by the Students Union Government, University
of Lagos
·
National Association of Nigeria Students
National Merit Award for contribution to the development
of Education in Nigeria
·
Award of Excellency by Current Affairs
Association of Nigeria
·
Distinguished Merit Award of Achievement
by South-South Students congress of the College of Arts,
Science and Technology, Keffi
·
Award of Excellence in Governance by the
National Union of Benue State Students
·
Makurdi Old Boys Association distinguished
award in recognition of leadership qualities
·
Award of honour by NTA TV guide fans club,
College of Education Akwanga
·
Merit Award for the worthy contribution
made towards the advancement of the Police Force and
safety of lives and properties of the people of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria
·
Aminu Kano International Award for
Exemplary Leadership
·
Fellowship Award in recognition of
meritorious contribution to Education by the Federal
College of Education, Pankshin
·
Visitor, Nasarawa State University, Keffi
·
Ahmadu Bello University National Alumni
Association Distinguished Merit Award
·
Award of the Fellow of the Nigeria Academy
of Education (FNAE), 2001
·
Honourary Fellowship of the Federal
Polytechnic, Offa, 2003
·
Chairman, Presidential Committee on the
Practice of Citizenship and Constitutional rights in
Nigeria, 2001/02
·
Chairman, Presidential Committee on Dairy
and Fruit Juice development in Nigeria 2004 to date.
·
Served as Chairman of the Nigeria
Governors Forum (Governor-General) from 1999 to 2004
·
Award of Excellence by Nigerian Institute
of Physics, 2004.
·
Distinguished Award of the National
Democratic Youth of Nigeria
At the gubernatorial elections held
throughout the country on April 19, 2003 Alhaji (Dr.)
Abdullahi Adamu was elected for a second tenure of four
years as the Chief Steward and Executive Governor of
Nasarawa State. He thus becomes the first person in the
history of the State to be elected by the popular
mandate of the people to serve twice in the exalted
position of Governor.
Alhaji Abdullahi Adamu is a lover
of sports, especially Football, Lawn Tennis, Squash,
Cricket, Hockey and Athletics. He still plays Lawn
Tennis and Squash racket.
His hobbies include Current
Affairs, Farming and Music.
Alhaji Abdullahi Adamu has visited
the following countries, amongst others: Great Britain,
USA, Germany, Italy, Poland, Hungary, Switzerland,
Canada, Turkey, South Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, Jamaica,
India, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Yugoslavia, Kenya, Namibia,
Angola, Mozambique, South Africa.
A well-rounded man, Alhaji
Abdullahi Adamu, Lawyer, Engineer, Technocrat, Farmer
and consummate politician is married and has six
children.
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