How my first wife, Maryam dreamt I will become Governor before Yobe was created - Sen. Bukar

Late Sen. Bukar Abba Ibrahim and his wife Maryam

How my first wife, Maryam dreamt I will become Governor before Yobe was created - Sen. Bukar

By Yusuf Ali

Sen. Bukar Abba Ibrahim has stated that his first wife Hajiya Maryam had dreamt and insisted that he will become governor even before the creation of Yobe state out of former Borno.

Bukar stated this in his autobiography "POORLITICS - The Little Boy from Goniri".

He said "many people have predicted that I will become governor even before the creation of Yobe but the prediction that really mattered most was that of my wife, Maryam. This one really spooked me with its uncanny prophetic certainty.

"Maryam keep insisting that I was going to be governor. For some time, I could not find out the reason behind her thinking. I asked "How can I become a governor when I'm only a campaign manager to my friend Engr. Ibrahim Ali for governor Borno state under SDP? There was no way I could compete against him because I was his campaign manager and we were both brothers-in-law in Maryam's family.

"I just saw no way I could become governor in Borno state. Yet my wife still insisted. She keep on praying and praying. She would even wake up my small children right in the middle of the night to pray for me.

"One rainy night, we were busy campaigning at a rally in a village called Limankara, in Gwoza local government area. Suddenly, some people called me and said, "A new state, Yobe has been created out of Borno state. It was on the 27th August, 1991. I was very happy, not because Maryam's dreamt has started manifesting but because my people, the neglected, marginalised half of Borno, would now get real development.

"After we returned to Maiduguri, pressure immediately started mounting run Bukar run. For about one week, I could not make up my mind whether to contest or not. The main reason was that I had no money. Usman Albishir, Abande Lawan, Engr. Ibrahim Ali and Mustapha Kachalla mobilised funds for the campaign. They got a few cars, and headquaters for the campaign in Damaturu. Many people joined the campaign train. I became the candidate, won the election and became the first Executive Governor of Yobe state.

"So Maryam's dreamt and prayers came to pass. As Allah has decreed. I did not only become governor but three times governor of Yobe state. What was so magical was that the Government created the new state as if in special answer to her prayers.

Yusuf Ali

Senior Special Assistant (SSA) Communications and Strategy.