An insight into Dambatta’s Pull of Fate
Belief in fate, good or bad, is one of the cardinal principles in Islam, but that belief does not in any way prevent man from striving to reach his goals in life because Allah has given man a free choice by which he performs his actions. It is in this light that the title of […]
Belief in fate, good or bad, is one of the cardinal principles in Islam, but that belief does not in any way prevent man from striving to reach his goals in life because Allah has given man a free choice by which he performs his actions. It is in this light that the title of the autobiography of Magaji Dambatta – Pull of Fate – should be understood.
The book details much more than just the life story of its subject, an individual who rose from a humble background to become one of the few respected statesmen Nigeria has ever known. And fate, rather than plan, played a very significant role in the life of Magaji Dambatta, a veteran journalist, tested diplomat, consummate politician, human rights activist, an accomplished civil servant and more.
Pull of Fate is written in lucid language, which makes it easily digestible by even the barely educated.
In fourteen solid chapters, and with the support of pictures and appendices, the author reveals the events of his life, highlighting his roots, formative years, role in the emancipation of the less privileged, otherwise known as Talakawa, his journalism career in both print and electronic media, intimate stories involving his successful marriage and how he maintains very close ties with his children as well as his constant clash with the authorities during his NEPU days.
In the first chapter, the reader is given an idea of what to expect, a sort of an overview of how the book ended up being an autobiography instead of the biography it was earlier anticipated to be. Here, the reader will also appreciate, or at least understand, why the story of great men, sometimes, needs to be narrated by them rather than by someone else. But still this did not stop Malam Magaji from seeking the opinion of others, as various instances in the book showed.
Chapter two, titled Setting, talks about Dambatta, in today’s Kano State, where the author hails from and which has been a part of his name right from childhood. The writer also delves into history, tracing his paternal and maternal roots and how the two played a role in his coming to this world. He closed the chapter on an emotional note where he talked about the death of his father from asthma.
In chapter three, titled Growing up, the writer continued in an emotional tone, talking about the death of the first two children of his parents, Halima and Dahiru. “The girl died of small pox infection when she was nine. I remember vividly when she was taken to her grave,” he said, adding that he did not know the second child because he died at infancy.
Born in 1931 to Hajiya Salamatu and Malam Shehu Usman, Magaji was named Nuhu after his maternal grandfather, who happened to be his father’s teacher and a famous imam of his time. “It was out of respect …and in due reverence to him that my parents, uncles and aunts nicknamed me Magaji (literally, the successor) to avoid calling his name. And Magaji stuck with him.
In chapter four, Dambatta talked about his days at the Produce Inspection Department, the much talked about groundnut pyramid of Kano, which he said cannot be replicated, among others.
In chapter five, Beginning of Political Activism, the writer again delves into history where he talked about the Danfodio jihad, British system of indirect rule. Also in this chapter, Malam Magaji revisited the formation of NEPU – which was first established as NEPA, i.e. Northern Elements Progressive Association – where he talked about it more elaborately than in chapter three.
Chapter six, titled Career in Journalism, concentrated mainly on the author’s first stint at full time journalism, which he briefly talked about in earlier chapters. He said he joined journalism because he was convinced that the profession gives an opportunity to enlighten and mobilize the people just he was doing in politics through NEPU. His most challenging assignment with the Nigerian Citizen, as he said, was the coverage of the visit to Nigeria in 1956 of Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain.
Also in this chapter, which, in my view, is the most interesting and eventful, Malam Magaji talked about his marriage to Sa’ade Dambatta – his wife of over five decades and the mother of his five children
In Joining the Civil Service, the title of chapter seven, Dambatta recalls his days as civil servants working both in Nigeria and abroad, while in chapter eight, titled The End of an Era, he gave an informed account of the military coup of January 15, 1966. And in chapter nine, he told another enlightened account of the civil war that broke out shortly after the tragic events of 1966. In chapter 10, he talked about the restructuring of Nigeria by the Yakubu Gowon regime in 1967 which gave Nigeria 12 states, six each from the North and South. In chapter 11, Malam Magaji discussed his days in foreign service, serving as a government publicist in London “…confronting a largely hostile press constantly dishing out prejudiced information against Nigeria” and he was able to turn the table, in a manner of speaking.
As an autobiography one can say that “Pull of Fate” has, in a manner of speaking, overstepped its bounds, because this is not just the story of Magaji Dambatta in his own words. This is because in reading about Dambatta, the reader finds himself reading about the Fulani, Hausa, the Danfodio Jihad, Northern Nigeria, pre and post independent Nigeria, and so on.
Perhaps, what I find most significant in the life of Magaji Dambatta, as a journalist, is how he was able to carve a niche for himself in journalism long before he received any form of training on the profession. Aspiring and practicing journalists will no doubt find it very inspiring. Indeed, historians, students, teachers, policy makers, the married (in this era of failed marriages, there is certainly a lot to learn from someone who has been in matrimony for more than half a century) and many others will find this book very relevant.
Save for the few spelling mistakes, the author made a great decision by agreeing to write about his life, which is the story of victory in many respects. And beyond the personal information, Dambatta’s book offers a revealing vision of a phenomenon of our time. The success of the writer’s career reflects the success of determination and zeal to excel in life. The autobiography, which evocatively conjured the author’s multifaceted life right from childhood, stands as a testament to the courage of Dambatta to identify a path very early in life and to stick to it. I therefore urge readers to read this book and most importantly internalize the content.