Onuminya Innocent in Sokoto
Vice President Kashim Shettima, on Thursday led a federal government delegation to Sokoto for the funeral of former Minister of Finance and Sardaunan Sokoto, Alhaji Abubakar Alhaji.
Alhaji Abubakar Alhaji died on Thursday at a hospital in Abuja. He was buried later in the day in Sokoto in accordance with Islamic injunctions.
The funeral prayer was held at the Sultan Bello Juma’at Mosque and was led by the Chief Imam of the mosque, Sheikh Muhammad Bello Akwara.
Shettima represented President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the burial. He was accompanied by key members of the Federal Executive Council.
Also in attendance were the Minister of Labour and Employment, Alhaji Muhammad Maigari Dingyadi, and the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Atiku Bagudu.
The Deputy Governor of Sokoto State, Engineer Idris Muhammad Gobir, represented Governor Ahmed Aliyu Sokoto, who is currently out of the country.
Prominent traditional and political figures also graced the occasion. They included the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, and the Speaker of the Sokoto State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Tukur Bala Bodinga.
Dignitaries from across the country converged on Sokoto to pay their last respects to the late elder statesman, who held one of the most revered traditional titles in the Sokoto Caliphate.
Tributes at the burial described Alhaji Abubakar Alhaji as a patriot, administrator and bridge builder. Speakers noted that his contributions to national development and to the Sokoto Sultanate spanned decades.
Alhaji Abubakar Alhaji served as Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and as Nigeria’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom in the 1990s.
Prayers were offered for the repose of his soul. Dignitaries prayed to Allah to forgive his shortcomings and grant him Aljannah Firdaus.