The death of Prof Abdulhamid Isa Dutse has thrown his family, Kano, Jigawa and the medical community into mourning, as our correspondent reports.
On the evening of Monday, October 5, Kano State was thrown into mourning following the death of Professor Abdulhamid Isa Dutse, 60, a former Chief Medical Director (CMD) at the Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital.
Prof. Dutse was a renowned medical doctor and academic, whose research interest centred around HIV/AIDS and immunization against infectious diseases. He was also a distinguished academic teaching both in Nigeria and the Department of Medicine, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
His death came as a shock as he only suffered a brief illness, culminating in his being rushed to the AKTH, where he was once the medical director. There were calls for prayers for his recovery.
The news that however emerged later that evening was of the passing of the famed academic.
As early as 8 am on Tuesday, hordes of sympathizers from far and near thronged the Al-Furqan Mosque along Alu Avenue, Nasarawa Government Reserved Area (GRA) in Kano for the final rites of the deceased.
The mourners were from all walks of life and included the state Deputy Governor, Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna, former governor of Jigawa State, Ali Saad Birnin Kudu, the Emir of Dutse, Nuhu Sunusi, several District heads and traditional title holders from both Kano and Jigawa as well as friends, families and relations.
Dr Aliyu Bashir Umar, chief Imam of Al-Furqan Mosque, led the funeral prayers at about 10 am and prayed for the repose of Prof Dutse’s soul.
Following the funeral, Prof Dutse’s remains, accompanied by a mammoth crowd and a long motorcade was conveyed to the Tarauni Cemetry, where it was interred at about 11 am.
“The demise of Prof. Dutse is certainly a great loss not only to the people of Kano but the entire world,” the deputy governor, Kano State, Nasiru Gawuna, said. “He is a specialist who excelled in his field of medicine and became known worldwide. His time has come and we’re all waiting for ours.”
The deputy governor described the deceased as a good person who helped many people overcome their ailments. He condoled the family of the deceased on behalf of the state government.
For the Emir of Dutse, Nuhu Sanusi, the loss of Prof Dutse is a great loss for the country.
“He was a beacon and model for people. He lived his life serving others in saving their lives. Now we can only pray for him and to God to grant him Aljanna Firdaus,” he said.
The emir pointed at the number of people who turned up for the funeral as a testimony to the impact Prof Dutse has had in the lives of people.
His family is distraught by the loss but take pride in the accomplishment of the late lecturer. His brother, Mahmud Dutse, said the late Dutse lived a worthy and exemplary life.
“It is a tragic loss to the community. A brilliant doctor who put his knowledge to the service of all who come across him,” he said. “He loves assisting people. It’s a tragic loss not only to us his immediate family but all people.”
A sympathiser, Muhammad Ahmad, who attended the interment, described the deceased as a devout Muslim who hardly missed the five daily prayers and a community man who would be sorely missed.
Some of his colleagues described him as a principled, simple and humble person who always took the time to guide his students and colleagues to the best of his ability.
“I presented some patients to him most times. He is a humble, patient person, always ready and available to listen, he takes his time despite being a professor to guide us, he is God-fearing and straight forward,” Dr Muhammad Suleiman said.
For Dr Sanusi Bala, the immediate past chairman of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) in Kano, “late Dutse is one of the most hard-working and intelligent doctors that I interacted with. He lived a simple life and was always ready to do what will advance the medical profession.”
He said Prof Dutse was always open to all invitations from his students and accepts them with humility.
“He recently agreed to chair one of the NMA committees that will enhance the welfare of doctors in the state,” he said.
The Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital where Prof Dutse was once a CMD, and also where he died, the loss was received with sadness, according to Hauwa Mohammed Abdullahi, spokesperson of the hospital.
She said the professor continued to mediate in disputes in the hospital up until his death and his role as an elder would be greatly missed.
Prof. Abdulhamid Isa Dutse was born on December 13, 1960, at Kwalli Quarters of Kano Municipal Area of Kano State. He attended Magwan Primary School and later proceeded to Rumfa College, Kano, after which he gained admission into the School of Basic Science, Zaria for his degree. He graduated with an MBBS degree from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, in 1982.
He worked with the Department of Medicine, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Kaduna State from 1984 to 1987 where he rose to the position of Senior Registrar.
He also worked at the Lagos University Hospital (Haematology Unit) from 1987 to 1988 and at the St. Bartholomew’s Hospital and the Hammer Smith Hospital both in the UK in 1989.
Late Dutse also served as a Consultant Physician at Kano State’s two major hospitals, Nassarawa and Murtala Mohammed Specialist Hospitals between 1989 and 1991.
He would eventually return to Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital as Acting Head of Department of Haematology and Blood Transfusion.
Dr Dutse later served the Jigawa State Government between February 1992 and February 1994 as Commissioner of Health and later as Secretary to the Government of the state under the governorship of Barrister Ali Sa’ad.
He then joined the services of Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital as Chief Consultant in May 1994 and became the first Chairman of the Medical Advisory Committee until November 1997.
In December 1998, he was appointed Dean, Faculty of Medicine, Bayero University, Kano. In July 2003, he became the second Chief Medical Director of Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital as approved by then-president Olusegun Obasanjo
He was a Fellow of the West African College of Physicians and in 2008, he was voted as the best Indigent Patients Friendly CMD by the Association of Medical Social Workers of Nigeria at its Conference in Port Harcourt.
AKTH, under Dr Dutse, was rated as the best teaching hospital in terms of service delivery by SERVICOM, Abuja. The hospital was also voted the best environmentally friendly hospital in Kano by the Environmental Health Officers Association of Nigeria.
During his tenure, Prof Dutse was the Chairman Committee of Chief Executives of Federal Tertiary Hospitals of Nigeria. He was also the chairman, Gunduma Health System, under the Jigawa State government at the time of Sule Lamido.
The late professor has a range of publications and attended national or international seminars and workshops where he made several presentations.
He is survived by his two wives, eight children and his aged mother.
