Hafsat Jalilah Adamu Adamu is an English Literature graduate of the American University of Nigeria, Yola, and daughter of Malam Adamu Adamu, the Minister of Education. She tells us the type of dad she has, how he is at home and a lot more.
Daily Trust: How would you describe your dad?
Hafsat: He’s my hero. He’s the best person ever. He’s played a great role in shaping me to who I am today which involves a lot of sacrifices I couldn’t possibly imagine or understand. To me, he’s a perfect person and my role model.
DT: What do you admire the most about him?
Hafsat: I love how intelligent, how brilliant, and how smart he is and how good with words he is. He’s also a very understanding person and loving too.
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DT: What kind of father is he – strict or relaxed?
Hafsat: Very relaxed. Generally, people will think he’d be a strict father because of how he writes but he is very different on paper compared to how he is in person. We play, we joke, he tells us stories, we spend a lot of time with him, and he’s just always there despite how busy he is. Sometimes in the morning he makes time for us before he leaves for work and when he comes home at night. It brings us all together.
DT: What advice has he given you that has stuck with you till date?
Hafsat: I should always pray, exercise and read books.
DT: What pet name does he call you?
Hafsat: Cat (laughs). When I was growing up, when he comes up the stairs, he calls me cat in Hausa and I’d meow and now he calls me Cat.
DT: What’s his favourite programme on TV?
Hafsat: National Geographic. He loves wildlife documentaries.
DT: What’s his favourite food?
Hafsat: Tuwonshinakafa with Miyan kuka, Kunun Tsamiya and chicken.
DT: What other profession do you think your dad would have excelled at?
Hafsat: He studied accounting. So for him to make the switch from accounting to journalism and make something great out of it, I feel he would have excelled at it if he had decided to be an accountant.
DT: How does he unwind?
Hafsat: He reads anything and everything he can get his hands on. I got my reading streak from him because I grew up surrounded by books so it was easy to fall into the culture.
DT: Can you share a fond family memory relating to him?
Hafsat: Yes, pillow fights. We would have pillow fights when we were younger. He would come back home from work, sneak upstairs, pick up a pillow and then just hide by the door. The first person that comes out of the room gets a slap with a pillow. By the time the person screams we already know what’s happening so we grab our pillows and the pillow fight ensues with two opposing sides: the person who got hit by the pillow and Baba, and the rest of the people in the room.
DT: What would you say is an aspect of his personality that people aren’t aware of?
Hafsat: He’s a very humorous person. He tells the funniest jokes ever. He has a really good sense of humour.
DT: You graduated as the best overall student in your department at AUN. How did he feel about it?
Hafsat: He was very excited. He was over the moon and I know this because before I knew what had happened, he was sharing the news with everyone. And the day I was coming back, he kept calling until the moment I got in the house. He was really happy. It’s sad he couldn’t make it because he was sick at the time. He was also very proud too.
