Alhaji Dahiru Mangal, elder brother to the late Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Max Air, Alhaji Bashir Barau Mangal, says none of his brothers was closer to him than the deceased.
Late Mangal died in the early hours of last Friday after a brief illness.
In an interview with Daily Trust, Mangal, who is the Chairman of Max Air, explained what his younger brother meant to him, to the family and their business empire, describing his death as a monumental loss.
“Actually, Bashir grew up under my tutelage, he was with me right from his childhood, even though our parents were alive at that time, he was under my care. I know his character, attitude and behaviour, so there is nothing I could say more than Inna Lillahi wa inna ilaihi raji’un (From Allah we come and Him is our return).
Bashir was part of my life struggles, I’ll greatly miss him — Dahiru Mangal
“Yes, we are brothers of the same parents, but I was like a father to him, I nurtured him, trained him and groomed him. I know he was a patient, kind and generous person. He had a good sense of humour and a good sense of human relation. He learned a lot from me in the art of living and in relating with other people with patience and decency up to the time that he became of age, got married and became a family man.
“He lived his life together with me, so I have no brother that is very very close to me more than the late Bashir. This is therefore a huge loss to all of us, but we have submitted everything to the will of Allah, because it is Allah who gave Bashir to us and it is He who has taken him away to him. Our prayer is that may Allah accept him and admit him into Aljannah Firdaus.
“We also pray to Allah to bless his offspring. He left behind five children, two daughters and three sons. The female ones have completed their education and got married while the three sons have completed their education too, up to the Masters level and they are now grown up and responsible members of the society. We pray to Allah to bless them. I also ask them to continue to pray for the repose of the soul of their father and pray also that May Allah grant them a fulfilled life and a good ending like that of their father,” he said.
