Friend of the poor who fought the rich. 10 other things you may not know about late Balarabe

The death of elder statesman and former governor of old Kaduna State, Balarabe Musa has been announced to the dismay of many who closely followed his career as a politician.

The news of his death was made public on Wednesday by a former senator representing Kaduna Central, Shehu Sani.

A well known Marxist who showed himself as a friend of the poor, Balarabe once exhibited his true colours after receiving an invitation to an event. When the Kaduna Polo Club sent Balarabe an invitation to join along with a mallet, he refused the invitation and gave the mallet to a servant, saying “I don’t play polo … It is the game of the rich and powerful, of neo-colonialists”.

The politician said that he was later impeached as governor of Kaduna State because he planned to have the state open small- and medium-sized industries, and this would deny the NPN members the opportunity of establishing their own enterprises.

He did initiate some state-owned companies, but they were unprofitable and all were eventually closed down after he was impeached from office.

READ ALSO: Nigeria has not fared well in 60 years, we need restructuring —Balarabe Musa

As a parting shot, we highlight ten things you may not know about the elder statesman who was once the leader of the Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP).

1.) He was born on 21 August 1936 in Kaya, Kaduna State.

2.) He studied at Zaria Middle School (1947–1952) and at the Institute of Administration, Zaria (1952–1953).

3.) He was an accounts clerk (1953–1955) and a school teacher (1955–1960).

4.) He held various managerial positions related to accountancy in the period 1960 to 1976, while studying at different colleges in London to gain additional qualifications.

5.) Musa was elected governor of Kaduna State in 1979 on the platform of the People’s Redemption Party (PRP).

6.) As Governor he was stalemated by the Kaduna state house of assembly, which was dominated by NPN members.

7.) He was unable to form a cabinet since he refused to nominate NPN members and the House refused to ratify his candidates.

8.) Eventually the House impeached him in June 1981, making him the first Nigerian state governor ever to be impeached.

9.) He was the PRP candidate for the presidency in the April 2003 elections, but was not successful with his bid.

10.) On 31 August 2018, Musa quit active politics due to health issues[16] and announced his immediate resignation from chairmanship of People’s Redemption Party.

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