Captivating moment of history and faith in Wusasa, 1973
On February 2, 1973, Head of State General Yakubu Gowon and his elder brother Mr Peter Gowon, a Second World War veteran, served as pallbearers at the funeral of their father, Papa Yohanna Gowon, held in Wusasa, Zaria (present-day Kaduna State).
The funeral service took place at St. Bartholomew’s Church, Wusasa, widely regarded as the oldest mission church in Northern Nigeria—a fitting venue for a man whose life was devoted to Christian missionary work.
Papa Yohanna Gowon, who passed away at the age of 93, was a respected Christian evangelist and missionary who dedicated several decades of service to the Sudan United Mission (SUM).
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His work left a lasting spiritual and social impact across Northern Nigeria, particularly in the Zaria area.
The burial drew several thousand mourners, reflecting the late patriarch’s influence beyond family and faith communities.
Among the distinguished attendees was President Diori Hamani of the Republic of Niger, underscoring the regional significance of the event.
Also present was a Guinean delegation, which included the wife of President Ahmed Sékou Touré of Guinea.
The ceremony stood as a rare convergence of state leadership, international diplomacy, Christian missionary heritage, and personal family loss—a solemn moment in Nigeria’s post-civil war era, remembered for its dignity, faith, and historical importance.
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