By Zubair A. Zubair

When Dr. Veronica, then a lecturer at the University of San Francisco, “adopted” me as her son in early 2020, I never imagined that a simple WhatsApp introduction would alter the trajectory of my life. Nestled in a group chat named “Nigerians in Diaspora,” I soaked up every opportunity she shared, scholarships, networking events, webinars. One afternoon in 2020, she tagged the president of the Nigerian American Public Affairs Committee (NAPAC USA), Prof. Nelson Aluya, in a post about an upcoming virtual panel. Without hesitation, I sent him a direct message expressing my eagerness to join the discussion.

At the time, Prof. Aluya was an Associate Professor of Medicine at Rutgers Medical School in New Jersey. His response was swift and generous: “Welcome aboard, Zubair. I look forward to seeing you there.” Little did I know that his simple act of inclusion would mark the beginning of a mentorship unlike any other. In that moment, I realized there was a connection. I had first encountered his name, and his eloquent voice, on NTA News in February 2018, when he spoke passionately about diabetes awareness. His clarity and compassion had captivated me then; now, I was on the verge of being guided by him.

A Promise to Mentor

During our first call in 2020, I nervously explained that I was a university student back home in Kano. Prof. Aluya listened intently, then made me a promise: “I will mentor you to become the leader Nigeria needs, confident, compassionate, and competent.” He introduced me to Aliyu Sulaiman, another aspiring youth leader, and together we launched a new WhatsApp group in early February 2021 called “Wake Up Africa.” Our shared mission was ambitious: to bridge divides between Africans on the continent, Africans in the diaspora, and people of African descent worldwide.

Trials, Tribulations, and Unwavering Support.
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Life’s challenges tested our resolve almost immediately. In March 2021, I lost my phone unexpectedly and was unable to rejoin the group for eight months. Just as I managed to reconnect in November, fate intervened again: during my “Use of English” exam, I misplaced my replacement phone. Forced offline once more, I spent two months unable to participate. Yet every time I resurfaced, Prof. Aluya reached out with the same warmth: “Zubair, we miss your voice. How can I help?” His unwavering support reminded me that mentorship transcends geography and setbacks.

From Virtual Chats to In-Person Impact
In January 2022, Prof. Aluya sponsored Aliyu, Shamsudden, and me to attend a Pan-African youth forum in Abuja. Walking into that conference hall, I felt the weight of possibility settle on my shoulders. Surrounded by young change-makers, I realized how vital our “Wake Up Africa” vision could be. Buoyed by this experience, Prof. Aluya challenged us to formalize our efforts. Thus, in February 2022, Youth Together Work Together (YTWT) was born a youth-led organization dedicated to community action across Nigeria.

Three Signature Projects
Under Prof. Aluya’s guidance and financial backing, YTWT executed three flagship initiatives over the next eighteen months:
1. Religious Tolerance Seminar (Kaduna, July 2022): Bringing together Muslim and Christian youth to foster dialogue and mutual respect.
2. Market Cleanup (Kano, August 2022): Mobilizing students, activists, journalists and traders to restore the city’s bustling markets, highlighting civic pride.
3. Youth Against Drug Abuse Campaign (Abuja, May 2024): Conducting workshops in schools, markets and community centers to educate peers on substance-abuse prevention.

Each project bore Prof. Aluya’s fingerprints: from strategy sessions over Zoom to on-the-ground coordination and resource mobilization.

Beyond Events: Lifelong Lessons
Prof. Aluya’s investment in me extended far beyond sponsoring trips. He guided me through public-speaking workshops, critiqued my writing, and introduced me to networks of professionals across healthcare, technology, and public policy. In July 2023, he arranged for me to attend a cybersecurity seminar in Jos; in April 2024, an IT conference in Ibadan; and this March, the ‘Come Talk Africa’ in Abuja. At each event, he reminded me: “Zubair, your voice matters. Use it well.”

His mentorship taught me resilience in the face of failure, humility in success, and generosity without expectation. When I doubted my talents, he reaffirmed them. When I feared I wasn’t enough, he declared that I already was.

A Mentor’s Legacy

Mentors come and go, but rare is the one who reshapes your understanding of service, leadership, and compassion. Prof. Aluya did more than fund projects, he believed in my potential when others did not see it. He challenged me to think bigger, serve better, and lead with my heart. Without ever asking for thanks, he gave of himself freely: his time, his wisdom, and his unwavering belief in Nigeria’s youth.

Conclusion

My parents gave me life and love. After them, Prof. Nelson Aluya gave me purpose and direction. As I prepare to graduate and embark on my own journey of service, I carry his lessons with me: to uplift others, to persevere through adversity, and to lead with integrity. This tribute, published today, is but a small token of my gratitude, and a reminder that some of the greatest gifts we receive are the people who see our potential before we see it ourselves.

“A mentor is not always the one who stands at your side, it is the one who reaches out to lift you higher.”
– Prof. Nelson Aluya

By Zubair A. Zubair
Kano, Nigeria

By MuttaqaYusha’u

myushau@gmail.com.

Since his re-election as President of the United States, Donald Trump has vowed to raise trade tariffs, particularly on Chinese imports. However, his protectionist trade agenda extends beyond China, affecting several countries, including those in Africa, even though Africa trades relatively less with the U.S. compared to other regions of the world.Trump’s trade policies are rooted in protectionism — an approach aimed at shielding American products from foreign competition. By doing so, the administration seeks to boost domestic employment, increase production, and promote shared prosperity for Americans.

However, the impact of these policies will vary across countries, depending on the extent of their reliance on the American market. The key question is: Can Trump’s trade policies significantly affect the African economy?According to the United States Census Bureau, Africa accounts for approximately 1.5% of total U.S. trade — a relatively small share. In 2023, African exports to the U.S. were valued at around $32 billion, with key sectors including crude oil, textiles and apparel, agricultural products, automobiles, and precious metals. Under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), many African countries have enjoyed duty-free access to the U.S. market, especially for textiles and agricultural goods.For instance, Lesotho, a small country in southern Africa, is highly dependent on textile exports to the U.S.

The textile industry in Lesotho employs around 12,000 workers, representing 42% of the total formal employment in the manufacturing sector. Similarly, South Africa exports automobiles, agricultural products, and minerals to the U.S., with the auto industry alone contributing significantly to employment and foreign exchange earnings. A 10% tariff on African exports would likely slow down these sectors, reduce export earnings, and contribute to rising unemployment. Many companies would be forced to lay off workers, deepening social and economic challenges.Moreover, tariffs would make African goods less competitive in the U.S. market, potentially eroding the gains made under trade agreements like AGOA. For example, textile exports from Africa under AGOA account for about $1.3 billion annually, providing jobs to tens of thousands of workers, particularly in countries like Kenya, Ethiopia, and Lesotho. The imposition of tariffs on AGOA-eligible goods would undermine the core objectives of the agreement, which aims to promote economic growth through trade. It would also discourage investment in sectors that had been built around preferential access to the U.S. market, ultimately threatening job creation and industrialization efforts across the continent.One key lesson from these developments is the urgent need for Africa to deepen intra-African trade as a strategy for economic resilience. The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), launched in 2021, provides a major opportunity for African countries to integrate their economies and trade more among themselves. According to the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), AfCFTA has the potential to boost intra-African trade by 52% by 2025, creating a larger market for African producers and reducing dependency on external markets.Recently, the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, stressed that the new U.S. tariffs, especially those affecting sectors like textiles in Lesotho, offer a wake-up call. She emphasized that African countries must seize this opportunity to strengthen their own markets, foster regional value chains, and build resilience against external shocks.In conclusion, while Africa’s direct exposure to Trump’s trade policies may seem limited, the localized impacts on sectors like textiles, agriculture, and automobiles could be significant. These changes reinforce the importance of regional economic integration and the need for African countries to diversify their trading partners and domestic markets. Africa must act swiftly to turn challenges into opportunities and chart a more self-reliant and sustainable economic future.

Even though he is my father, I knew many things about him from his friends, family, and some elders of the Tudun-Wada community.

My father, a fine attorney Mukhtar Adamu Abubakar died some 32 years ago as a result of a ghastly motor accident that occurred on April 18th, 1993 on Bauchi to Kano Road as reported by the Triumph Newspaper of 27th April 1993.

We lost him when I was just 6 months old, I was not opportune to meet with him and learn from this brilliant gentleman.

Alhaji Me Tebur, a relative of Alhaji Lawan Na Yaya and Alhaji Sulaiman Yahya would tell an elder brother, another family friend Mujitafa Lawan Muhammad that Tanko Dan Takarda ne “Tanko is a learned person”.

I have written a series of tributes to my father since 2011, the last time I penned a tribute was in 2023 titled: 30 Years Without Mukhtari Professor

My father bears different nicknames, he was called by his friend Professor, and community members referred to him as Tanko because he is a younger brother to two women Late Maryam Adamu (Ladi) and Binta Adamu (Zaria). It’s the tradition of the Hausa people to refer to someone with two immediate senior sisters as Tanko and that’s how my father and mentor got the name having been born and raised in a predominantly Hausa Community.

He was called Comrade because he was a student leader, Speaker of the Students Representative Assembly of Ahmadu Bello University in 1979, and Secretary General of the Students Union Government in 1980.

It’s not a coincidence that I was also the Deputy Speaker of the Students Representatives Assembly of Northwest University, Kano, and also the Secretary General of the Students Council. It’s a thing of joy that I followed the footsteps of my role model even though I didn’t read law.

Tanko Dan Takarda is a regular reader of newspapers, he was a contributor at the then Sunday Triumph Literary Digest and an anchor of a radio program at Kano State Radio Corporation as I was told by a fine writer and journalist Mallam Kabiru Muhammad Gwagwanzo who was once an Editor of the Triumph newspapers.

As I delved into the story of my father, I realized that he left a good name for his family and was one of the most loved personalities by his friends, family, and community members.

My father was a man of many parts. He worked briefly in the bank, was a freelance journalist, a successful lawyer, and also a writer. This can be seen through his love for books and contributions to the national dailies. My mother always remembers his column ‘Literary Corner’ in the then Sunday Triumph.

We inherited a large number of books from our father, many of which were autographed by the authors, including the renowned novelist and author Chukwuemeka Ike, who was a contemporary of Wole Soyinka, Chinua Achebe, etc., the late Dan Iyan Zazzau Nuhu Muhammad Bayero, and the Liberation of Nigeria, which was autographed by the late Yusuf Bala Usman.

My father was a Pupil Counsel in the Kano State Ministry of Justice a senior Magistrate Grade I and II in the Kano State Judiciary before he was appointed company secretary/legal adviser of the Nigerian Hotels Limited in Lagos.

My father died two days after he was appointed Solicitor General of Kano State by then-governor Alhaji Kabiru Ibrahim Gaya. As reported by The Triumph of Thursday 27th April 1993:

“New Solicitor General Dies

Alhaji Mukhtar Abubakar whose appointment as Solicitor General of Kano State was announced last Friday has died in a private clinic last Sunday.

He died from fatal wounds he sustained in a ghastly motor accident on April 18th, 1993 on Bauchi to Kano Road.

Aged 34, the deceased had his primary education at Tudun Wada Nassarawa LGA before attending Government Secondary School Lautai Gumel from 1972-1976. He graduated with an LLB Hons Degree from Ahmadu Bello University Zaria in 1982 and was called to the Bar in 1983.

The Late Mukhtar started his career as a State Counsel with the State Ministry of Justice, Kano, and had attended various courses at the University of Lagos and the Nigerian Institute of Legal Studies.

In 1987, he joined the lower bench of the judicial department in Kano state as a senior magistrate and rose to the position of chief Magistrate.

In November 1991, he went over to Nigerian Hotels Limited as the Company Secretary, a position he held until the announcement of his recent appointment.

Meanwhile, the governors of Kano and Jigawa States Alhaji Kabiru Ibrahim Gaya and Barrister Ali Saadu Birnin Kudu have paid a condolence visit to the family of the deceased.

The governors described the death of Alhaji Mukhtar Abubakar as a great loss to the state Judiciary and the entire people of Kano State”.

The legacy of our iconic father, the Late Mukhtari Adamu Abubakar of blessed memory, has granted us unexpected favors and accorded us respect and courtesy many times

“He was nicknamed professor by his secondary school classmates because of his mastery of the English Language.
He was friendly to all that he met, he was exceptionally brilliant and unassuming”.

This was in the words of one of his classmates in a comment to one of my tributes in their class WhatsApp group. It was sent to me by the Dan Amar of Gumel Alhaji Sani Ahmed Babandi in 2021.

I have written a lot about my father for the past 15 years, but words will not be enough to describe him. We shall tell my son, Muhammad Mukhtar, Adam Naufal, and their cousins Fatima, Ameer, Khairat, Haidar, and Fudail about a great man called Mukhtari Professor.

May Allah S.W.T grant my father, his friend, Yusuf Muhammad Tudun Wada, Hajiya Hauwa Mai Kosai, Baba Ladi, Aunty Sarauniya, and all the departed souls eternal rest.

Ameen.

Adnan is a communication consultant and university lecturer. He writes from Abuja, Nigeria