Ex-UniAbuja VC, Nuhu Yaqub, Dies

A former Vice Chancellor of the University of Abuja, Professor Nuhu Yaqub, has died.

He was 74.

Professor Yaqub died after a brief illness on Saturday at a private hospital in Abuja.

Mr Yaqub, who was born in Okene on 3 March 1951 to late Alhaji Yaqub and Hajiya Aishatu Yaqub, started his Qur’anic education and completed it in 1963.

He started his primary education at Nurul Islam Primary School in Okene in 1961. He was there up to 1967.

After his first degree, he was employed by the old Kwara State as a teacher at Lennon Memorial College Okene. He was there for about a year before he got an appointment as a graduate assistant at the then-University of Sokoto, which later changed to Usmanu Danfodio University (UDUS). He was there up to the time he came to the University of Abuja as Vice-Chancellor.

The Usmanu Danfodio University sent him for his MA at the University of Toronto, Canada. He also got a federal government scholarship to go to the University of Sussex, England where he did his PhD in 1989. He rose steadily to the rank of a Professor in 1998.

At a point, he was Head, Dept. of Political Science. Later, he became the Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences and coordinator of four faculties under him because the institution ran a collegiate system. From 1999, he was made Deputy Vice Chancellor for four years before he came to Abuja as VC.

Meanwhile, The Director General, National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS), Prof Abubakar Sulaiman, on Saturday, expressed deep condolences on the death of the Chairman of the Institute’s Academic Advisory Board, Prof. Nuhu Yaqub.

Sulaiman, in a statement he signed, described the demise of Yaqub as shocking and devastating.

The DG paid tributes to the late academic, who was a former Vice-Chancellor of Sokoto State University and the University of Abuja at separate times, describing him as a renowned scholar who played a pivotal role in advancing education and research in Nigeria.

He noted that Yaqub’s dedication and expertise had left an indelible mark on the intellectual development of the nation, influencing countless students and policymakers.

Sulaiman lamented that the highly accomplished scholar and political scientist exited the stage at a time when his vast experience and knowledge would have been invaluable.

Prof Sulaiman further described the loss as a personal one, adding that Kogi State had lost an illustrious academic.

The DG extended his condolences to Yaqub’s wife, children, and family, as well as the government and people of Kogi State, academic institutions, and university communities across the country.