My mum would’ve made a great nurse – Aisha Isyaku Kiru

Hajiya Aisha Isyaku Kiru is a former Commissioner for Health and presently a lecturer at the Bayero University, Kano. She is daughter of Hajiya Amina Isyaku Kiru who was a commissioner under the late Muhammadu Abubakar Rimi administration in the old Kano State. She worked with the late Hassan Usman Katsina in the then Northern […]

Hajiya Aisha Isyaku Kiru is a former Commissioner for Health and presently a lecturer at the Bayero University, Kano. She is daughter of Hajiya Amina Isyaku Kiru who was a commissioner under the late Muhammadu Abubakar Rimi administration in the old Kano State. She worked with the late Hassan Usman Katsina in the then Northern Region and also served as a member of the presidential campaign teams of Nnamdi Azikwe and Shehu Musa Yar’adua. Excerpts:

Daily Trust: How would you describe your mother?

Hajiya Aisha Isyaku Kiru: There are many ways to do so. She is a mother, not only to her children, but to others who come her way. She is a very compassionate and religious person who loves people. She always tells me that her life will never be complete if she doesn’t have people around her. She is very courageous, hardworking and full of wisdom. Hajiya is also patriotic and loves her country dearly.

She never keeps grudges, rather she forgives easily as if nothing happened. She appreciates every little gesture done to her and is a bridge builder that gives hope to people.

DT: What do you cherish most about her?

Kiru: I really cherish her support. She is very supportive, even though we her children have left and live in our various homes. Hajiya never eats alone. There are people around her always. This amazes me. I don’t think I can be like her even though I am trying. She is generous and accommodative.

DT: What do you think people should remember her most for?

Kiru: I want people to remember her for what she is and what she stands for. She stands against injustice.

DT: What makes her angry?

Kiru: What really makes Hajiya angry is when she sees injustice done to someone, irrespective of whether she knows that person or not. She hates it when someone is looked down on and believes every human being deserves respect.

DT: What is it like being her daughter and what views would you like to correct about her?

Kiru: I am always proud to present myself as her daughter wherever I go. However, she has never served as a commissioner during Audu Bako’s government as erroneously reported. She was a commissioner only during Rimi’s administration in the old Kano State. She did a lot in Kano State in particular and to the nation in general. That earned her a national merit award during Obasanjo’s administration.

DT: What makes her happy?

Kiru: She is always happy when other people are happy, especially when she is associated with the source of that happiness.

DT: What is her favourite food?

Kiru: Her favourite food is the traditional tuwon dawa with miyar kuka or any vegetable soup. That is what she loves to eat.

DT: What profession do you think she would have excelled at besides what she does?

Kiru: Hajiya would have been a good adviser, because her foresightedness is amazing and she loves to give advice. Another thing she would have been good at is being a nurse. She loves nursing people back to good health.

DT: How does she relax?

Kiru: She enjoys reading after attending to her guests, which she does on a daily basis.