Minister of Education Malam Adamu Adamu
He struggled to enter the same car with Adamu Adamu to the National Assembly on the day Adamu was to be screened by the Senate as Minister of the Federal Republic. I called a relative and asked what was going on because Malam Adamu was here surrounded by strange people. Later I learnt he was Dr Baffa Bichi, a lecturer in the Department of Computer Science of Bayero University, Kano. He was introduced to the minister by Ambassador Jumba, Adamu’s old school mate, to assist him in the Transition Committee when he was appointed its Secretary after Buhari’s victory in the 2015 elections.
After the screening exercise, Adamu Adamu emerged as Minister of Education and a small Committee of friends headed by Ambassador Jumba chose Baffa to become his Special Assistant. By this time Baffa had endeared himself to everyone and all supported his nomination as S.A to the Minister. It was around this time that appointments into the boards of the various parastatals under the Ministry came up; many had considerations for Baffa as a result of his commitment and loyalty to the Minister. The Minister was advised by close associates to appoint Baffa to head Tetfund instead of appointing unknown people. Convinced of Baffa’s competence, loyalty and hard work, Adamu Adamu sent Baffa’s credentials to the president and Baffa was announced as the Executive Secretary of Tetfund. It was actually celebration time for everyone.
Baffa ran Tetfund like his home and became unnecessarily harsh to the staff and the system of operations. The staff described his actions as either vindictive or wicked. By this time it was clear to all that Baffa had become his own man, listening to no one, not even the Minister. Baffa was constantly harassing his staff unjustifiably and the complaint about his immature behavior was everywhere. However, all this while Baffa gave the impression that he was making positive changes and people, including the Minister gave him the benefit of the doubt until he proved otherwise.
And when recently Baffa was removed, he told the BBC that the Minister called for his removal because he would not give contract kickback. It was indeed a shock to everyone that Baffa will dare speak about Adamu Adamu in this manner. By doing so Baffa has revealed the character that he is. Many people had cautioned on Baffa’s appointment, saying he could turn out to be ungrateful. Adamu Adamu is known to almost everyone in this country and Baffa alone cannot soil his reputation.
In the interview, Baffa was quoted saying he cannot betray the trust of Nigeria and president Buhari. Of course, at this point Baffa does not need to preserve or protect anything that has to do with Adamu Adamu, for the fact that he does not need Adamu anymore but more than ever needs the trust of Buhari and Nigerians to be called to serve again elsewhere now or after 2019 elections. What Baffa who claims to be PhD holder does not know is that the president is nobody’s fool, and Baffa might only be fooling and deceiving himself, but honestly he should quietly go back to the classroom in Kano until he retires.
An honest person in the place of Baffa after his sack would have come to Adamu Adamu and said thank you Sir, for the opportunity to serve Nigeria and apologize for any wrong he might have done. His actions have however shown Baffa to be ungrateful, undependable, dangerous, uncouth and capable of telling treacherous lies. If not how on earth could Baffa have felt that he could engage Adamu Adamu in a brawl? If not for Adamu Adamu’s generosity and simplicity, how on earth could Baffa have dreamt of becoming the Executive Secretary of Tetfund? Would it have been possible for Baffa to achieve such feat on his own?
Dr Baffa as it is now has become the victim of his own character and vaulting ambition, and must understand that he will fail woefully in trying to convince Nigerians that Adamu Adamu is corrupt. He definitely cannot convince President Buhari, whose Special Assistant Adamu has been from 1995 until he was elected president in 2015. Baffa’s life is an example to many of us, that a virtuous life and values of trust, loyalty and honesty is what is required to sustain our success in life.
Gamawa, Ph. D, wrote this piece from Bauchi.
