Lamido: Our cheerful Chairman bows out

Few days before he passed away, I visited him at Dr. A’isha’s Danny’s Wellness Clinic, Jalingo and the moment I entered the room, he turned his head towards me and said, “Bala ka zo ne?” (Bala is my other name and he preferred calling me with it), meaning Bala ‘have you come’? As he was saying this, his face instantly beamed with his trademark smile which all of us cherished and will continue to cherish till eternity. Once I sat down on a nearby bed beside his, he asked me a question that had become familiar and used to precede all my conversations with him since the death of Malam (his close friend) whether on phone or when were together thus; “yaya unguwar mu” (how is our neighbourhood)? In asking this question, Chairman basically wanted to know how people in his native Unguwar Gadi were doing, because he no longer lived there and his hitherto frequent visits drastically reduced following the death of Malam who lived there when he was alive. That was vintage Chairman; he was relatively far from his people, but his heart was always with them and that is how he will continue to be in our hearts till we meet again to part no more.
Despite his visible weakness due to diminishing strength, I and a relation of his who was then taking care of him in the clinic chatted meaningfully with him for over an hour and there was no trace of resignation, regret, frustration or despair in his voice throughout our discussion. Rather, he was full of hope, courage, steadfast, piety, perseverance and mental strength in a manner that all true Muslims are enjoined or expected to behave whenever they are afflicted by any form of disease or difficulty in life. He even told us how his planned trip to India for medical treatment was put on hold till he regain or attain a certain level of physical strength or fitness. Painfully, this was not to be as he eventually but gallantly surrendered to the cold and inescapable hands of death few days later.
The sad news of Lamido’s death reached me courtesy of a heart-breaking phone call from his childhood friend, Alhaji Inuwa Suleiman Yerima Bappa Sanda immediately after Magrib prayers on that fateful Friday. I was still in the office working late on some papers. Yerima’s unusually shaky voice on the phone had already generated a mild tension in me and by the time he dropped the bombshell, I subconsciously sprung up on my feet and  stayed motionless without uttering a word for about 15 or so minutes. When I eventually regained my composure, I parked all the papers aside and headed straight to the deceased house where I joined other sympathizers who were already there and waited till the arrival of the corpse at around 9:15pm.
At the sight of Lamido’s body being brought out from the vehicle, the atmosphere understandably became emotionally charged and strikingly, it was his wife, Hajiya A’ishatu (Nana) who exhibited a remarkable strength of character as she was calmed and even urged women to pray instead of crying without any sign of emotional breakdown showing on her. I guessed she must have cried and finished all the tears in her eyes in Yola which made her remained strong in Jalingo for those who could not hold back their emotions against the surging pains of the exit from this world, of their dearest Lamido.
Lamido is a Fulani word for king. Though the deceased was not a king or a traditional title holder in a conventional sense, he was unarguably a king in the hearts of his people especially the down-trodden ones in the society.
He relocated to his new residence at Malam Joda neighbourhood barely three to four years ago, but his positive impacts were felt by most members of the neighbourhood as if he had been there for decades. And this was possible based on his accommodating, friendly, charitable, considerate, philanthropic and humane attributes. He was also very tolerant as his residence became a house to all in the neighbourhood following the establishment of a non–formal Qur’anic school by him right inside his house for children and women. He adopted some orphans and single-handedly renovated a mosque to a standard level in the neighbourhood. Chairman was also a cheerful giver and renowned peace broker who often stepped in to resolve any personal misunderstanding between individuals and even groups.
Thus, the tears that flooded the cheeks of many people before, during and after his jana’izah were were primarily the expression of pains at the loss of a truly good man in a world where very few good men exist! To the Fulani race, they have lost someone with a genuine and original Fulani blood and who epitomized the sanctity of “Pulaku” (honour). To the NUJ, Taraba State, it has lost one of its most successful Chairmen in history; to the Taraba State Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, it has lost one of its most competent Information Officers; to the Government  House Correspondents’ Chapel, they have lost a honest and reliable team-leader; to the Governor of Taraba State, Danbaba Danfulani Suntai (CON), he has lost a long–standing and trustworthy aide; to the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Alhaji Hassan Mijinyawa, he has lost a hardworking and loyal subordinate; to his wife, she has lost the best friend and husband of her life; to his children, they have lost the best mentor and father of their lives; to his relations, they have lost the best supporter and relation of their lives; to members of his neighbourhood at Malam Joda, they have lost a dependable neighbour and philanthropist; to the people of his native Unguwar Gadi neighbourhood, they have lost a compassionate and supportive brother; to his closest friend, Alhaji Sirajo Manu, he has lost a loving confidant; to his childhood/peer-group friend, Alhaji Inuwa Suleiman Yerima Bappa Sanda, he has lost someone who served as his best friend during his first wedding and to me in particular, I am yet to find a suitable word, phrase to quantify or qualify what I lost in him.
Part of a tribute I wrote for his close friend (Malam) at his death last March read thus, “Malam, you were always fond of surprising us with pleasant jokes. But leaving us for good without a real “notice” even to your dearest “Chair” (Jibrin Lamido) was a surprise taken too far, a bitter pill to swallow and a debt you have taken that we (members of your ‘fada’) are all eager to join you there one day and pay you back in equal measure”. I never knew Chairman (Jibrin Garba Lamido) was the most eager to join Malam this early to pay him back in equal measure until last Friday.
Lamido typified a popular Hausa saying of, “farin mutum mai farin aniya” (fair/white skinned man with good intentions). He is very fair in complexion and his favourite colour is white. His traditional and English wears are white including his shoes and even car. We also learned from Islamic scholars and literatures that white is the favourite colour of the angels and most dominant colour in Aljannah (paradise) and even the universe as we can see in the clouds.
As I helplessly watched the lifeless body of our white-loving Chairman being lowered into the grave and the glowing whiteness of his “likkafath” (white coloured garment for wrapping of the dead in Islam), I instinctively murmured the “takhbir” and “hamdala” on the fact that even in death, Lamido still had his favourite colour wrapped around him to protect, comfort and keep him warm all the way to Aljannatul-Firdaus by the grace of Allah (SWT)!
Zongre is a younger friend to the deceased and resides along Yerima Bappa Sanda Road, Turaki “A” Ward, Jalingo.