Meet 6 top-ranking professors from North-East
The North-East zone of Nigeria comprising of six states – Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Taraba, and Yobe has become notorious for terrorism, crisis in recent times, but the region has produced and is still producing brilliant minds that have performed exceptionally in various fields of life and human endeavors, saving lives and winning impressive academic laurels worldwide.
Professor Auwal Abubakar, born on 20th January, 1966 in Mayokila village, Leko District of Jada local government area of Adamawa State. He started his education at L.E.A. Primary School Lengdo in Jada local government of Adamawa State between 1973 and 1978. He was at the famous Government Secondary School, Ganye between 1978 and 1981. Professor Abubakar gained admission at the School of Basic Studies (A.B.U. Zaria) in 1983 and in 1984 was admitted to read medicine at the Faculty of Medicine, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and graduated with MBBS degree in 1989.
Professor Abubakar is a renowned scholar and current Medical Director & Chief Executive Officer of Federal Medical Centre, Yola, Adamawa State. He led teams that separated conjoined twins and has earned several awards for leading multiple successful surgeries of separating conjoined twins.
The erudite scholar and Professor of Paediatric Surgery have in the past operated successfully three cases of conjoined twins. On 14th of May 2018, Professor Auwal, led another team of 26 medical personals including surgeons on a similar mission and successfully separated conjoined twin girls named Fatimah and Maryam.
Professor Zainab Alkali is the first female novelist from Northern Nigeria, Zaynab Alkali was born in 1950 into the Tura-Mazila family of Borno and Adamawa States. Her Islamic family came from a Tura-Wazila in Borno State, Nigeria, and later they moved to a Christian village in Gongola State, where she was brought up. She started her primary education at Waka Girls Boarding (Primary) School, Biu.
For secondary education, she attended Queen Elizabeth Secondary School, Ilorin. Zaynab Alkali went on to obtain both her first and second degrees from Ahmadu Bello University (ABU)/BUK, Zaria. At Bayero University Kano (BUK), she studied English to a doctorate level in 1973. She obtained a doctorate in African Literature in English in 1979 in the same university, and became the principal of Sakera Girls’ boarding school.
Zaynab Alkali has authored the following books, The Stillborn, The Virtuous Woman, Cobwebs & Others, The Descendants, The Initiates and the most recently Invisible Borders,. Three of the six books have won prizes, The Stillborn- ANA prize for the Best novel of the year, The Virtuous Woman – Spectrum Award (1978–2002), Cobwebs & Other Stories – ANA Award.
She married a former vice-chancellor of the University of Maiduguri, Mohammed Nur Alkali, and they have six children.
Professor Emeritus Umaru Shehu is a Professor from Borno State, the first Emeritus in Northern Nigeria with unmatched Profile in medicine profession. Professor Umaru Shehu was born on 8 December 1930 in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital. He attended Elementary School, Maiduguri 1935-1940; Middle School, Maiduguri 1941-1943; Kaduna College, Kaduna 1944-1947; University College Ibadan 1948-1953; and was at the University of Liverpool between 1953-1956, and 1966-1967.
He was VC of University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN) from 1978 to 1980.
Shehu started work as a Pre-registration house surgeon, Southport infirmary, the United Kingdom in 1957. He returned back to Nigeria and served the government of Northern Nigeria as pre-registration house physician, same year, and was promoted to the rank of medical officer, from 1957-1963; senior medical officer, from 1963-1965; principal medical officer, from 1965-1966; assistant chief medical officer, from 1966-1967 and chief medical officer, (Preventive Services Division), from 1967-1968.
He is the current chairman board of governors of the STOPAIDS organisation; chairman governing board of the National Agency for the Control of AIDS, (NACA).
Professor Jibrin Aminu is an indigene of Adamawa State, a professor of Medicine and a politician. Jibril Muhammad Aminu was born in August, 1939. He is a professor of cardiology, he obtained an M.B.B.S from the University of Ibadan in 1965, and a PhD in Medicine from the Royal Post-Graduate Medical School, London in 1972.
He was appointed a Fellow of the Nigerian Academy of Science in 1972, a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, London in 1980 and a Fellow of the West African College of Physicians also in 1980.
He was made a Distinguished Fellow of the Nigerian Postgraduate Medical College in 2004.
Professor Jibrin was Nigerian Ambassador to the USA (1999–2003) and was elected Senator for Adamawa Central constituency of Adamawa State, Nigeria, taking office on 29 May 2003. He is a member of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
Professor Ahmed Babagana from Yobe State is Northeast’s first Professor & Consultant of Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT). Babagana is the former Medical Director of National Ear Care Centre, Kaduna.
His records in the National Ear Care Centre, Kaduna.
Acquisition of permanent site in 2006.
Development, equipping of permanent site paving way for relocation of clinical services in January, 2009.
Commissioning of permanent site on 26th June 2009 by the Honorable Minister of State Health.
1st Joint Convocation of ENT Nurses held on 27th June 2009 held at the permanent site.
Training
Trained 203 Post Basic ENT Nurses from 2002 – 2008.
Trained 418 primary ear care providers from 2004 to date.
Trained over 100 trainers in the Train-the-Trainers workshop. (1st in Africa launched by WHO in 2005)
Granted approval for residency training.
Professor Iya Abubakar from Adamawa State is the first rate mathematician of Africa who became a professor at 28. Professor Iya Abubakar was born on 14 December 1934. He was educated at Barewa College, University College Ibadan (later to become the University of Ibadan) and earned a Ph.D at the University of Cambridge. He worked as a visiting professor at the University of Michigan in 1965–66, before being appointed as Professor of Mathematics at Ahmadu Bello University at the age of 28, in 1967.
He is a mathematician who held multiple cabinet level appointments (Minister of Defence and Minister of Internal Affairs) during the Second Republic, and Senator for Adamawa North from May 1999 to May 2007.
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