I was quite thrilled when Ali Muhammad Ali, the Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) posted an e-wedding invitation letter of his niece at the Old site Juma’at Mosque of the Bayero University, Kano to my inbox last week.
There were several reasons for my happiness, but the primary one is that it will provide me with the opportunity to meet several well-known and seasoned journalists, some of whom I collaborated with at The Triumph Publishing Company.
Many of them met me there, but some of them were undoubtedly in the pen pushing business before I started working for the company as a lithographer. And as soon as I entered the premises of the mosque, I saw many of them.
Ustaz Aliyu Umar and numerous others were taking group photos when I first saw them. But since Umar is always reachable because he is a man I see frequently, either when I visit their office on Zaria Road or when he pays me a visit in Fagge, I opted to see those that were difficult to see.
The next person I saw was Baba Halilu Dantiye, the former editor-in-chief of the Triumph newspapers, who was also the former president of the Nigeria’s Guild of Editors as well as former commissioner of information among other well-wishers on the mosque premises. I went straight to him and had a handshake.
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And immediately when I entered the mosque, I noticed Ali M. Ali with the Imams doing all necessary things before the Fatiha.
Looking next, I saw Muhammad Garba, the former deputy editor of the Triumph who was also the former President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) and also commissioner of information in Kano state seated alone so I met him and exchanged greetings and cracked jokes.
And due to their accomplishments and successes in life, Baba Halilu Danttiye and Muhammad Garba are the Triumph family’s personalities that are the source of great joy and pride for all of the family members.
And the two that I missed for a very long time because ever since the Triumph was shut down, I have found it quite difficult to see either Dantiye or Garba because of their social standing and political engagements in the society.
Looking around inside the mosques, I saw personalities like our former News Editor Musa Ilallah, who was seated next to our former Sunday Triumph Editor Dr. Dalhatu Yola, who is now a lecturer at the Mahmoud Baba Ahmed University and a man named Lawal, whose last name I can’t recall.
I sat nearer to them when the Wedding Fatiha was going on, struck up an educational conversation, which also resulted in some productive dialogues.
After the Fatiha, I accompanied Ali M. Ali outside the mosque, where we saw hundreds of well-wishers who had crowded the place waiting to congratulate and offer goodwill messages to the newly married couple.
That was when I spotted our former News Editor, Dr. Sule Y. Sule, lecturer at the Bayero University, our former Chief Photographer, Bar. Umoru Ibrahim, who is currently the Deputy Editor of the Triumph and our former and current Technical Services Controller, Malam Taiwo Yusuf, there.
Malam Ado Umar, the former Editor of the Daily Triumph who was also a former Permanent Secretary was also present. So did Hamisu Umar, our salary officer at the time.
After that, almost all of the Triumph family members in attendance went to the Kundila Juma’at Mosque for the wedding Fatiha of Baba Halilu Dantiye’s daughter except me who had to go and reread my weekly write-up and put finishing touches before submitting it for publication in order to beat the clock.
Ina adduar Allah yasa albarka, amen.
