Bauchi state’s forgotten forefathers

General Murtala Ramat Mohammed died on February 13, 1976. He created Bauchi state on February 3, 1976. This was barely 10 days before his assassination. Whenever General Murtala is celebrated, Bauchi’s birth comes to mind. Bauchi state, alongside its contemporaries, recently celebrated their 49th birthday. Bauchi was carved out of the then North Eastern State with headquarters at Maiduguri, Borno state.

In a recent interview with Wakilin Tarihin Bauchi, Alhaji Ado Danrimi Garba, who is the custodian of history and historical artefacts and documentation in the Bauchi Emirate Council; he stated that Bauchi was the initial capital of the North Eastern States, being a gateway to the region, before it was changed to Maiduguri, by the influence of a prominent Borno state indigene, Alhaji Abba Jundun.

It was observed that Bauchi was not at par with the infrastructural developments of Borno state, and so it was easy to re-site the capital. Even with this, the sons of Bauchi never rested from the drive for the actualisation of Bauchi as a capital, and a state of its own. Elders from the region frowned on this move and tried to scuttle the movement for Bauchi state, visiting punitive measures on the highly placed civil servants from Bauchi at the federal level, who were found to be part of the Bauchi state movement.

Yakubu of Bauchi founded the Bauchi Emirate in 1805 under the Othman Ibn Fodio Caliphate. Bauchi became a vassal state under the Sokoto Caliphate. Bauchi was the most powerful Emirate under the Sokoto Caliphate due to its military might. The then Sultan of Sokoto was under the threat of an invasion and conquest from the Shehu of Borno, who was believed to be the mightiest and most prolific king in the North.

Yakubun Bauchi came to the rescue of the Sokoto Caliphate as all other emirs from other vassal states failed to attempt or stop the Shehu of Borno’s march with his army, to defeat and take over the Sokoto Caliphate and, by implication, the entire Northern region. At the behest of the Sultan, Yakubu of Bauchi defeated the Shehu Laminu of Borno and his great army. Some of his belongings recovered from the battle including his slippers and seat are warehoused in Bauchi emirate.

In fact, the seat is what the Bauchi emir traditionally uses to mount and dismount from his horse during sallah. This earned Yakubu of Bauchi the title Sarkin Yakin Sarkin Musulmi and 2nd in command to the Sultan. The coming of the Sultan’s brother Abdullahin Gwandu as Sarkin Gwandu naturally demoted Yakubu to being 3rd in the Sultanate hierarchy. Again, the coming of turawa further demoted Bauchi to being 4th in hierarchy after Kano, due to Kano’s prowess in revenue generation. Bauchi state had the highest number of the Sokoto Caliphates’ flagbearers, namely, Bauchi, Gombe, Katagum, Misau and Jama’are Emirates.

Wakilin Tarihi, in the Bauchi at 49 TV programme, gave insights to the struggle for the realisation of Bauchi state. Prominent persons in the struggle include: Alhaji Adamu Tafawa Balewa, Bello Kirfi, Abubakar Umar, Abdulsalam Sambo, Elnafaty, Dahiru Deba, Chadi Aliyu, Yerima Abdullahi, Garba Aminu and Shehu Awak, to mention just a few. Most of them were persecuted over their movement for the realisation of Bauchi state. Elders of the North East state were averse to the movement and preferred a unified North Eastern state.

However, Ambassador Bala Basa and Mukhtar Tahir the late Talban Bauchi were close friends to General Murtala Mohammed. Both worked with him in Lagos. Mukhtar Tahir was a federal permanent secretary. It was their influence that finally led to the realisation of Bauchi as a state as they were very close friends and all the while, Murtala was aware and part of their state’s struggle for independence. Wakilin Tarihi stated that other states were also created because of Bauchi state. This is not in anyway intended to downplay the efforts of the other prominent personalities that worked assiduously for the cause, but to also highlight the inputs and efforts of people like Mukhtar Tahir and Bala Basa who were very much instrumental and key to the realisation of the struggle. Mukhtar’s closeness to Murtala was a huge part in the coming in being of Bauchi state.

Without Bala Mohammed’s astronomical strides in the infrastructural development of Bauchi state in the last six years, I would have said that Bauchi has been dusted by its peers and is far left behind by its contemporaries. My cousin from Sokoto came to Bauchi for a condolence visit and he was wowed by what he saw. He confessed to me that Bauchi has changed a lot! He had to be taken around because he couldn’t find his way.

On a piece titled, ‘The Urban renewal of Bauchi’ published by Blueprint Newspapers on 10th July, 2024; I tried to capture Bala Mohammed’s infrastructural do-over of Bauchi state. With this piece, I urge him to immortalise some of these founding fathers of Bauchi state, especially Mukhtar Tahir, the late Talba, who is an elder brother to the colossus Dr. Ibrahim Tahir, the late Talba. It would be an honour well deserved if one of the major roads or other structures built by his administration is named after Mukhtar Tahir. Each time Bauchi is being discussed and detailed, his name is usually not in the conversation. Perhaps it’s because he died long ago. But his role should not be forgotten. His contributions ought to be celebrated; by whom other than the architect of the reconstruction of Bauchi?