Munir Abubakar goes home

The news of the demise of Mallam Munir Abubakar, our former disbursement manager, Power Holding Company of Nigeria, (PHCN), Kumbutso business unit, Kano Distribution Command, is terribly sad. He died on the 18th, June, 2011, after a protracted kidney failure. Earlier around 2008, a kidney or what doctors call renal transplant was performed on him […]

The news of the demise of Mallam Munir Abubakar, our former disbursement manager, Power Holding Company of Nigeria, (PHCN), Kumbutso business unit, Kano Distribution Command, is terribly sad. He died on the 18th, June, 2011, after a protracted kidney failure. Earlier around 2008, a kidney or what doctors call renal transplant was performed on him successfully at the Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, Kano; the same hospital where he died last month. A day after his death, I went to PHCN Kano Head Office and noticed an unusual stillness by all the staff. They seem to be carrying an emotional burden.

Mallam Muhammad Munir Abubakar, a native of Gwale local government of Kano state, was my very close boss and a brother indeed. We became close since I joined the PHCN in June 2010 and posted to Kumbutso business unit under his office of Accounts Disbursement manager. He is what you can rightly describe as an introvert, who is shy and energized by being alone and even more concerned with the inner world of the mind. What I don’t know yet is, whether he is naturally like that or because of his illness? But one thing I observed with the late Mallam Munir was that he enjoys thinking, exploring his thoughts. Though he had good social skills and had conversations with only a few people, however those conversations were generally about ideas and concepts, not about what he considered trivial matters and social small talks. He was a dedicated and honest civil servant.

“Ahmad, please focus your talk on issues not personalities,” I remember once he cautioned me. He told me to consider, “PHCN is a mini Nigeria, and you find every tribe here so never discriminate against people of different faith from yours. I was employed in 1998 and did my induction at Lagos. I was later transferred to Dutse in Jigawa state, Funtua in Katsina state and lately my home state, Kano.”

He had once counselled me to be serious in my job to which I answered that I do not enjoy working anywhere else except the print media. I told him my plan one day to resign and become a journalist. Expressing his confidence in me he had proclaimed that I will become a great journalist. On the PHCN problems, I remember him telling me that he believed the government is not sincere or not willing to solve the issue of power sector.

On the issue of privatization, he believed that poor management, decaying infrastructures and poor service delivery has remained a problem with public service leading to the global drive for privatization, but the main problem of privatization as he saw it, was the possibility that the service will become available but affordable only to the small percentage that can pay. That was a manifestation of his concern for the needy in our society.

We also discussed about government’s lack of interest in our welfare, and its unwillingness to effect the agreed payment of 50 per cent salary increase, fixation of the power sector challenges and of course the allegation that some ‘’economic hawks’’ were desperate to appropriate PHCN for their personal aggrandizement.

Late Mallam Munir was not concerned with politics and I believe him. But he had special regards for two prominent politicians, the governor of Niger state, Aliyu Babangida and of course the current governor of Kano state, Rabi’u Kwankwaso. He liked Babangida Aliyu for his effort of revolutionizing the concept of leadership and essence of governance. He told me this in late 2010, and unfortunately for me, I couldn’t meet him to congratulate him for the victory of these two gentlemen, Dr Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso and Dr Aiyu Babangida.  The last time, we went to his house to welcome him back after a medical trip to Egypt, we could not discuss politics because of the situation. Mallam Munir lived an exemplary live during which anyone that came across him must have benefitted one way or the other.

He is survived by a wife, children and his brothers, Professor Hafiz Abubakar of Bayero University Kano and Mallam Mahe Abubakar of Zenith Bank. May Mallam’s gentle soul rest in perfect peace in Jannatul Firdaus, amin.

Makarfi  wrote from Faculty of Law, B.U.K. [email protected]