Written by Sufyan Lawal Kabo
There are leaders who merely occupy public office, and there are rare leaders who leave a permanent mark on the history and hearts of their people. The late Sir Ahmadu Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto, belonged to the latter. At a time when Northern Nigeria lagged seriously in education, skilled manpower, infrastructure and economic development, the Sardauna saw development as an urgent responsibility. With courage, selflessness and uncommon vision, he invested in education, scholarships, agriculture, industries, institutions, peace and human development, laying foundations that produced generations of Northern professionals and leaders.
Today, in a different generation and through modern governance, Senator Barau I. Jibrin, CFR, is demonstrating a similar belief that the greatest investment in a people is investment in their future. Kano North, once largely rural and underserved, is witnessing a remarkable expansion in education, infrastructure, security institutions and empowerment. Among his landmark interventions are the Federal Polytechnic, Kabo, which he initiated and which was subsequently upgraded into the Federal University of Science and Technology, Kabo; the Nigeria Police Service Commission Training Institute in Kabo; a modern Police Secondary School; the newly facilitated Kabo Police Division; the NSCDC Training College in Gwarzo; and the Nigeria Immigration Service Training School in Bichi.
Like the Sardauna’s scholarship revolution, Barau’s modern approach deliberately prepares young people for the future. Through scholarships and educational support, including opportunities in advanced and emerging fields, he is helping to build a new generation for the modern economy. His interventions in schools and higher institutions, security infrastructure, roads, healthcare, agriculture, solar lighting and empowerment are opening new opportunities for commerce and human development across Kano North.
The Sardauna understood that a people could not overcome poverty and backwardness without education, opportunity and purposeful leadership. Senator Barau appears to understand the same truth in the language of the twenty-first century. His empowerment programmes are creating economic opportunities, while his investments in education, security and infrastructure are clearing the ground for agriculture, commerce, skills development and wider prosperity.
This is why we consider Senator Barau I. Jibrin the Sardauna of our time. Like the great Sardauna, he represents leadership driven by service rather than personal comfort, and vision rather than immediate political gain. Rare gems are not created by accident. We believe that at certain moments in history, God raises exceptional individuals with uncommon capacity to answer the needs of their people.
It is therefore our conviction that Senator Barau’s journey should not stop here. We look forward to seeing him rise from the leadership of the Senate to the Government House in Kano and, by God’s grace, to the Presidency of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. We believe that giving his vision, energy and development philosophy a wider platform can translate into gigantic human and infrastructural development for Kano State and Nigeria. That is why we call Senator Barau I. Jibrin: The Sardauna of Our Time.
Sufyan writes from Kabo
Shawall Barau JibrinShawall Barau I Jibrin FoundationAbba Kabir YusufLimamin KANO FIRST Hon. Ibrahim Waiya