By Abbas Yushau Yusuf

There has been debate in the online media space in Kano about the actual founder of Kano State’s first owned university, the Aliko Dangote University of Science and Technology.

During the aborted Third Republic, Alhaji Kabiru Ibrahim Gaya was sworn in as the Governor of Kano State in January 1992, succeeding Colonel Idris Garba, now retired Major General Idris Garba, as Governor of Kano State.

When Architect Kabiru Ibrahim Gaya became Governor, he hardly appeared at any public function without saying “Insha Allah,” which means “by Allah’s will”—a phrase every Muslim is encouraged to say before embarking on any earthly endeavor.

But keen political observers at the time understood that most of Governor Kabiru Gaya’s pronouncements on the eve of his inauguration were not fulfilled before the military takeover on 17 November 1993.

For example, on the day of his inauguration, Governor Kabiru Gaya told the Kano populace at the Racecourse that he was going to build a large stadium. Until he left Government House, that promise was never fulfilled.

He also promised to separate male and female passengers; at that time, the main means of transportation in Kano and its environs was the Hiace bus. That promise was also never implemented.

Meanwhile, Kano’s neighboring state, the newly created Jigawa, under its young Governor, Ali Sa’adu Birnin Kudu—a protégé of Alhaji Sule Lamido—hit the ground running and executed several projects. These included establishing the first radio station in Jigawa, whose airwaves could be received in Kano, and the immediate construction of 1,000 houses called Gida Dubu in the Takur area of the state capital.

From then on, Kano people began referring to their governor with the slogan: “Insha Allahu na Kano, Aiki na Jigawa,” meaning, “The pronouncement of Allah’s will is in Kano, while the practical work is going on in Jigawa.”

Now, to the main subject: In 1992, with the proliferation of state-owned universities in the southern part of Nigeria, northern states began following suit. That year, Reverend Father Moses Adasu, the late Governor of Benue State during the same aborted Third Republic, secured a license to establish Benue State University—just as Governor Kabiru Gaya, ruling Kano under the platform of the National Republican Convention (NRC), secured a license from the National Universities Commission to establish Kano State’s first university.

Nigerian Tracker observed that, unlike Governor Kabiru Gaya of Kano, Reverend Father Moses Adasu, apart from securing the license for Benue State University, ensured that the institution began operations immediately, with structures put in place and academic activities kicking off.

Governor Kabiru Gaya also appointed its first Vice-Chancellor, a computer scientist, Malam Hafiz Wali, a Master’s degree holder, and sited its campus at Bagauda, now the Kano Law School. However, when Governor Kwankwaso assumed leadership of Kano in 1999, he changed the site to the present campus in Wudil because the Federal Government under Chief Olusegun Obasanjo wanted to build a Law School, and Governor Kwankwaso handed the Bagauda site over to the Federal Government for that purpose.

In contrast, for the Kano State University, apart from obtaining the license, nothing else was done until the military intervened and Governor Kabiru Gaya left office with only the license to his credit.

Nigerian Tracker reports that by the year 2001—eight years after Benue State University had already graduated many students—Kano State, under the leadership of Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso in his first tenure, dusted off the license secured by Governor Kabiru Gaya, established structures, and ordered the immediate commencement of academic activities. Today, the institution has been in operation for 24 years, while Benue State University has operated for 33 years.

So, between Governor Kabiru Gaya and Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, who actually established Kano State’s first university?