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Tribute: Adieu Comrade Shehi Ali Abubakar
By Dr Ibrahim Musa
“For each and everyone of us men and women, the young and old, the leaders and the led, the haves and have-nots; there is a time to be born and a time to die. In between is a privilege to live; to live to the glory of your creator, to the glory of humanity and to the glory of your nation.” ~ James Haruna Audu
When I picked the pen to write about you, it suddenly dawned on me that you are gone forever. I will never see you again and nor will you ever get to read my tribute about you. Such an overwhelming thought finally broke my emotional shield and tears flowed like a river on my cheeks.
I have tried first to convince myself that the news of your death was just a nightmare, hoping that I would wake up with a racing heart to see everything going on fine. Alas! As the clock ticked and ticked, and time passed- the shocking reality began to sink: “Kulli man alaiha faan. Wa yabqa wajhu Rabbika zuljalali wal ikram.”
Shehi is someone I adored for his stellar qualities. His charisma, courage, demeanor, taste and enterprising style made him a dream leader for our generation. Although by rank and age he was far above me, yet he treated me as one of his closest allies and a confidant.
Whenever I was bored with work at office, I would rush to his tastefully furnished office where we usually dwelled in socio-political discourse. He was always angry at the sorry state of our national infrastructures. He was literally bitter about the bad leadership that came to define the Nigeria of our generation. Little wonder that for the past 16 years he had devoted to the Project Buhari and invested so much in his own unique way to see that Buhari has emerged as the president of Nigeria. Immediately Buhari was announced as the winner of 2019 election, Shehi joyfully organized one of the biggest open-invite “walima” to celebrate the victory.
He remained optimistic that Buhari would eventually turn around the fortunes of this country. This was the typical Shehi who was so passionate about his choices. Love or hate him, you would not find pretense in his dictionary. At a point he was offered a political appointment to be the head of a health-related agency- but he instantly turned down the offer by pointing out to the government his conflict of interest. Even the person who brought the news of that appointment to him was left completely amazed by his forthrightness. I am not aware of many people capable of doing that.
To say that I am presently devastated is an understatement. Losing such kind of a trusted and dependable comrade at a prime age always create a huge void. We had many shared dreams for the development of our state, Kano and country, Nigeria. As our most distinguished mentor Dr. Michael DeBaun would say, “Shehi has done more non-imaging transcranial Doppler scan (TCD) for patients with SCD than any other expert in the world.”
He had successfully trained several radiologists, medical officers and nurses the rare skills to do TCD, which has now become a standard of care for our patients in Kano and Kaduna states. If not for his untimely demise, he would have been the first radiologist in the world to use the Artificial Intelligence (AI) mannequin specifically designed for TCD training.
I remember his vision of venturing into big data science for TCD. Professionally, he had his path well laid down for him. On the business front, the Ray Scan he founded a couple of years ago is probably the biggest indigenously driven private diagnostic center in Kano. He was like the proverbial Midas, everything he touched turned into gold. His was a life completely devoted to family and humanity- from philanthropy, leadership of professional groups to community service. Considering that these legacies would survive him, I take solace in the fact that he lives through his good deeds.
I have a take home message for his immediate family. He was certainly a good man! His son Murad, daughter Fatima and the unborn child would live to be proud of him as a father. He did everything humanly possible to leave behind a good family name; and I could see that his kids have that trait to step into the big vacant shoes with time. To Zainab (his dearest wife), I pray that you may have the fortitude to bear this irreparable loss. This is, indeed, a trying time but God is sufficient for you. We pray for Allah to repose Shehi’s soul in Jannatul Firdaus.
Adieu brother
Adieu comrade
Dr Musa, is a Consultant Hematologist at AKTH
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
The Kano State Government says it has executed 1,508 development projects worth more than N928 billion across the state’s 44 local government areas since Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf assumed office, with about 80 per cent of constituency projects awarded between 2023 and 2025 already completed.
KANO FOCUS reports that the Commissioner for Public Procurement, Projects Monitoring and Evaluation, Comrade Nura Iro Ma’aji Sumaila, disclosed this during an international press briefing on the administration’s infrastructure development programme.
According to Comrade Sumaila, the projects cover critical sectors including roads, urban renewal, education, healthcare, security and other social infrastructure.
He said 799 of the projects have been completed, while 709 are at various stages of execution. He added that the state is also implementing 619 constituency projects through members of the Kano State House of Assembly.
The commissioner noted that about 80 per cent of the constituency projects have been completed. However, he said some projects remain unfinished because of rising construction costs caused by inflation.
He said the government has submitted a request to Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf for an upward review of contract sums to enable contractors complete the affected projects.
Breakdown of projects
Comrade Sumaila said the administration spent over N169 billion on urban renewal projects, including road rehabilitation, drainage construction and other metropolitan infrastructure.
He said another N118 billion was committed to constructing five-kilometre roads in 38 local government areas to improve connectivity across the state.
According to him, the government also awarded contracts worth over N6.8 billion for the construction of Kano State Neighbourhood Watch security divisions in 36 local government areas.
He added that rural infrastructure projects covering education, healthcare and other social interventions across the 44 local government areas account for contracts valued at more than N397 billion, while other ongoing projects have a combined value of about N255 billion.
Commitment to transparency
The commissioner said the Ministry of Public Procurement, Projects Monitoring and Evaluation would continue to ensure compliance with due process and technical standards in the execution of government projects.
He said the ministry’s mandate includes monitoring projects to ensure value for money and prudent utilisation of public resources.
According to him, the administration’s investments in infrastructure are intended to improve mobility, strengthen security, expand access to education and healthcare, improve water supply and stimulate economic growth across the state.
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
Kano State has emerged as the highest-ranked sub-national government in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for education spending, according to the latest Sub-National Education Spending Index developed by the University of Paris.
KANO FOCUS reports that the ranking places Kano State first among 209 first-level sub-national governments across 15 ECOWAS member countries, underscoring the state’s growing reputation for prioritising investment in education.
According to the published index, Kano topped the rankings with an overall S-WAESI score of 87.21, outperforming other leading regions, including Dakar and Saint-Louis in Senegal. Lagos State was the second Nigerian state on the list, ranking 16th overall.
The assessment evaluated states and regions using the S-WAESI (Sub-National Weighted Aggregate Education Spending Index) methodology, which measures government commitment to education through indicators such as actual education expenditure, spending per student, budget execution, education priority, transparency and evidence-based reporting.
The methodology assigns 35 points to actual education spending, 25 points to spending per student, 20 points to budget execution, 10 points to education priority and 10 points to transparency.
The report indicated that Kano excelled largely due to its strong actual education spending and budget execution, making it the best-performing sub-national government in the region.
The ranking covered states, regions, districts and municipalities across Nigeria, Senegal, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Togo, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau and Cabo Verde.
Kano State Accountability Forum on Education (K-SAFE) said the recognition reflects Kano State Government’s sustained investment in expanding access to education, improving school infrastructure and strengthening educational planning and budget implementation.
KANO FOCUS reports that the achievement is expected to further boost the state’s profile as a leader in education reform within West Africa and provide additional momentum for ongoing efforts to improve learning outcomes across the state.
The latest ranking comes amid renewed attention on education financing across ECOWAS, with experts increasingly emphasising transparent budgeting, efficient resource utilisation and sustained public investment as critical drivers of quality education.
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
Kano State has emerged as one of the biggest beneficiaries of the World Bank-supported HOPE Governance Programme after qualifying for a total of $3.5 million in performance-based incentives for implementing key governance, education and healthcare reforms.
KANO FOCUS reports that the World Bank, through the HOPE Governance Programme domiciled in the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, approved $27 million in incentives for states that successfully met the Year Zero Disbursement-Linked Results (DLRs).
The National Coordinator of the HOPE Governance Programme, Assad Hassan, announced the incentives on Tuesday in Abuja during a retreat attended by commissioners, permanent secretaries and directors of budget and planning from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
A statement issued by the programme’s Communications Officer, Joe Mutah, said the incentives were based on the recommendations of the Interim Independent Verification Agent, which assessed states’ performance against agreed reform indicators.
Kano ranked among the highest-performing states, qualifying for incentives under three separate reform indicators.
The state will receive $1.5 million under Disbursement-Linked Result (DLR) 2.1 for adopting comprehensive guidelines for the preparation and submission of consolidated work plans for the state basic education budget.
It also qualified for another $1.5 million under DLR 2.2, which recognises states that adopted comprehensive guidelines for consolidated work plans for state primary healthcare budgets.
In addition, Kano secured $500,000 under DLR 2.3 for adopting harmonised budget guidelines and a unified chart of accounts for local governments.
Altogether, the state is expected to receive $3.5 million, making it one of the top-performing states under the programme.
Only five states—Bayelsa, Borno, Kano, Kebbi and Yobe—qualified for both the education and healthcare planning incentives, earning $3 million each from the two indicators alone.
Kano further distinguished itself by qualifying under the local government budgeting reform indicator, increasing its total allocation to $3.5 million.
The state also featured among 15 states that met the requirements under DLR 4.1, which rewards states for publishing their 2025 Citizens Budget for basic education and primary healthcare by February 28, 2025. Each qualifying state under this indicator will receive $500,000.
Other states that qualified under DLR 4.1 are Abia, Bayelsa, Borno, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Imo, Jigawa, Kebbi, Kogi, Nasarawa, Ondo, Plateau and Yobe.
According to the programme, the performance-based incentives are designed to encourage states to strengthen governance systems, improve budget transparency and enhance planning in the education and primary healthcare sectors.
KANO FOCUS reports that the HOPE Governance Programme is a World Bank-supported initiative implemented through the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning to promote improved public financial management and better service delivery across Nigeria’s states.
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