The body of late President Umaru Yar’Adua has been buried at the Dan Marna cemetery located about five kilometres from the Katsina township stadium where it was earlier brought for Islamic prayers before interment.
Social and economic activities came to a stood still Thursday in Katsina as Nigerians from all walks of life gathered to pay their last respect to the late President, Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’Adua who died at the Presidential Villa (Aso Rock), Abuja, after a protracted illness. The ceremony which started at about 10 am with armed soldiers and policemen had been positioned at strategic places to keep vigil and ensure that trouble makers do not use the opportunity of the burial to disturb the peace.
The body, draped in white, was placed in a simple grave at about 6.30pm after final prayers.A detachment of troops had fired a 21-gun salute to bid the late president farewell.
The funeral was attended by all the service chiefs and the state governors. Thousands of residents of Katsina residents chanting Allah Arkbar (God is great) had joined the funeral cortege.
Yar’Adua’s father and elder brother, Shehu were interred at the cemetery.
The roll call of notable Nigerians and foreigners who witnessed Yar’Adua’s burial include two former Heads of State, Generals Muhammadu Buhari, Ibrahim Babangida, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar 111, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole, former Senate President, Anyim Pius Anyim, his then deputy, Alhaji Ibrahim Mantu, former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ghali Na’Abbah, the Prime Minister of Niger Republic and former Lagos State Governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the Minister of state for Defence, Alhaji Murtala Yar’Adua.
Others include the National Chairman of the Actiom Congress, Chief Bisi Akande, National Chairman of the ruling People’s Democratic Party, PDP, Prince Vincent Ogbulafor, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, Yayale Ahmed, his predecessor in office, Ambassador Babagana kingibe and the former governors of Kaduna and Niger states, respectively, Senator Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi and Alhaji Abdulkadir Kure, national chairman of FERMA; respectively.
Serving governors present at the occasion included those of Kaduna, Rivers, Enugu, Anambra, Abia, Cross Rvers, Kogi, Kwara, Edo, Ogun, Adamawa,Akwa Ibom and Osun states and most of the Emirs from Katsina, Kaduna, Kebbi, Bauchi and other northern states.
Most of the visitors were received by the duo of Yar’Adua’s relations including Alhajis Wada and Manir Yar’Adua.
The large crowd of eminent personalities waited from about 11.30 am under the scotching sun till about 3.05pm when the ambulance bearing the corpse of the late President arrived the family compound at Yar’Adua Quarters.
The Toyota bus ambulance with registration number K 721 A 30 is owned by the General Hospital, Mani and was led into the family house by another bus carrying most of the governors in the country.
In the wake of Yar’adua’s death, all the perceived politics with the then ailing President Umar Yar’Adua who battled ill-health for about six months has come to an end.
Yar’adua’s death last night validated our series of reports that Turai Yar’adua personally oversaw the massive media blitz that bribed newspaper and television top shots to carry often-laughable stories about Yar’adua’s imminent reclamation of the presidency.
Several Nigerian news media were used for Turai Yar’adua’s mindless games which ended up “degrading her husband”.
They claimed that Yar’adua was playing with his grandkids, nieces, and nephews or that he took walks in the gardens of Aso Rock Villa, making stops to commune with birds. Even foreign television stations like Al Jazeera and the BBC were at one time or the other co-opted in such mindless tricks.
www.elombah.com