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Inna lillahi wa inna ilaihin raji’un. Professor Umar Shehu just passed away at Maiduguri. May Allah SWT forgive his shortcomings

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Inna lillahi wa inna ilaihin raji’un. Professor Umar Shehu just passed away at Maiduguri. May Allah SWT forgive his shortcomings

PROF UMARU SHEHU :

Abstract:

Professor Umaru Shehu is a Nigerian Professor of Medicine and former Vice Chancellor of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. He is a Professor Emeritus, Community health, University of Maiduguri and former President of the Nigerian Academy of Science. Professor Umaru received a Bachelor of Medicine degree, MBBS from the University of London. He also received a fellowship of the Institute of Cancer Research and he is the editor-in-chief of the British Medical Journal.

Full History:

Professor Umaru Shehu was born on December 8, 1930 in Maiduguri, Nigeria. He attended Elementary School, Maiduguri 1935-1940; Middle School, Maiduguri 1941-1943; Kaduna College, Kaduna 1944-1947; University College Ibadan 1948-1953; and was at the University of Liverpool between 1953-1956, and 1966-1967. Professor Shehu holds MBBS (London), IRCF (London), MRCS (England), DPH (Liverpool), FMCPH, MFCM, FFCM (UK), FFCM (Nigeria), FAS, FWACP, DFMC (Nigeria).

Professor Shehu started working as a Pre-registration House Surgeon, Southport Infirmary, United Kingdom in 1957. He came back to the Government of Northern Nigeria as Pre-registration House Physician that same year, and was promoted Medical Officer 1957-1963; Senior Medical Officer 1963-1965; Principal Medical Officer 1965-1966; Assistant Chief Medical Officer 1966-1967; Chief Medical Officer (Preventive Services Division) 1967-1968.

Professor Shehu was then redeployed to North-Eastern State as Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health and Chief Medical Officer, an offer he declined only to move on to Ahmadu Bello University to take up appointment as Reader and Acting Head of Department of Community Medicine 1968-1970; Deputy Dean, Faculty of Medicine 1968-1970; Acting Director, Institute of Health 1969-1970; Professor of Community Medicine 1970; Head of Department of Community Medicine 1970-1978; Director, Institute of Health 1970-1977; Deputy Vice Chancellor 1975-1976; Pro Vice Chancellor (Academic) 1977-1978.Professor Shehu held visiting professorships in various universities, including the School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA 1976-1977.

He was appointed Vice Chancellor, University of Nigeria, Nsukka 1978-1980. He also worked with the World Health Organization as Short Term Consultant (Working Group on Health Services and Manpower Development Mechanism) in Geneva, September 1970; Appointed Temporary Adviser, October 1970; Short Term Consultant, 1971-1973; Consultant (Technical Discussions), 24th WHO Regional Committee for Africa 1974; National WHO Program Coordinator/Representative in Nigeria 1980-1985; Director, WHO Sub-Regional Health Development Office 111, 1985-1989; WHO Representative to Ethiopia, 1990.At the University of Maiduguri, Professor Shehu was appointed Honorary Consultant Physician since 1991 to date, and became Professor Emeritus in 2000.

He was also the Provost of the College of Medical Sciences 1991-1993; and Sole Administrator of the University of Maiduguri 1993-1994. At the University College Hospital Ibadan, he was the Chairman, Board of Management 1991-1994. At Bayero University, Kano, he was Pro-Chancellor and Chairman Governing Council 1993-1996, and also Pro-Chancellor and Chairman Governing Council of the University of Lagos 1996-1999.He has held memberships and offices in several committees, councils, panels and commissions at both national and international levels.

He was President of Medical Schools in Africa 1973-1975; and External Examiner in Public Health at the University of Ghana Medical School. He is the current Chairman Board of Governors of the STOPAIDS organization; Chairman Governing Board of the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA); Patron Guild of Medical Directors; Patron Nationwide Network for Health; Patron Nigerian Medical Forum of Great Britain and Ireland; Patron Nigerian Institute of Stress; Trustee National Foundation on VVF; Member Board of Trustees, Nigerian Tuberculosis and Leprosy Association; Member Editorial Board, West African Medical Journal; Consulting Editor, the Nigerian Medical Practitioner; Editorial Adviser, the Nigerian Postgraduate Medical Journal; Joint Editor-in-Chief, British Medical Journal (West Africa) Edition.

Apart from holding active memberships of Professional bodies as the Nigerian Medical Association, The Society of Health (Nigeria), Science Association of Nigeria, Association of Community Physicians of Nigeria, and the Nigerian Academy of Science, Professor Shehu is also a Foundation Fellow of the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria; Foundation Fellow of the West African College of Physicians; Foundation Fellow of the Nigerian Academy of Science; and Foundation Fellow of the Faculty of Community Medicine (Nigeria).

Professor Umaru Shehu is mentioned in Who is Who in the world; Men of Achievement; Dictionary of International Biography; Africa Year Book 1977—Who is Who in Africa; Who is Who in Nigeria; and A Dictionary of African Biography.
He holds Honorary Doctor of Science Degrees of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. In 1979, the Government of Nigeria awarded him the Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON), and in 2000 he was awarded the Commander of the Federal Republic (CFR).

He is married with children.

Final Words:

I wish to say thank you all for reading this and my other previous articles and posts. At this point I would like to use this opportunity to thank everybody and With this I conclude my final postings on Facebook today 10/11/2016.

In case you need me for any positive response to a critical question just click here: Ali Alhaji and leave a message.

Good bye all and remain very blessed.

Yours faithfully

Inna lillahi wa inna ilaihin raji’un. Professor Umar Shehu just passed away at Maiduguri. May Allah SWT forgive his shortcomings

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Police arrest three officers for attempted murder of colleague’s son in Lagos over alleged affair with wife

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Police arrest three officers for attempted murder of colleague’s son in Lagos over alleged affair with wife

By: Zagazola Makama

The Lagos State Police Command has arrested three police inspectors for allegedly assaulting a 22-year-old man to a state of coma at the 22 PMF Barracks, Ogudu.

Sources told Zagazola Makama that the incident occurred on Tuesday around 6:00 p.m. when the officers Inspector John Alom of 63 PMF Ikorodu, Inspector Sunday Adoga of CTU Base 2 Ikeja, and Inspector Jehovah Usam of 22 PMF Ikeja allegedly lured the victim, Jacob Sunday, to their room.

Jacob, said to be the son of Inspector Sunday Ochepo, was accused by the suspects of having an affair with the wife of one ASP Audu Richard, identified as Sarah Richard, who also resides in the barracks.

According to the sources , the victim was stripped naked and severely beaten until he lost consciousness.

He was later rescued by a team of detectives and taken to the Police College Cottage Hospital, Ikeja, where he is currently receiving treatment at the emergency unit.

The three officers have been arrested and detained pending disciplinary action.

Sources said that the Command said investigation into the incident is ongoing.

Police arrest three officers for attempted murder of colleague’s son in Lagos over alleged affair with wife

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Nigeria’s Strategic Partnerships: What the French Military Academy’s Visit to NDA Really Means

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Nigeria’s Strategic Partnerships: What the French Military Academy’s Visit to NDA Really Means

By Senator Iroegbu

The recent visit of Lt-Gen. Emmanuel Charpy, Commandant of the École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr (ESM)—France’s foremost military academy—to the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) in Kaduna may have seemed like another routine diplomatic engagement. But its more profound implications for Nigeria’s national security, strategic autonomy, and regional leadership are far more profound.

At a time when social media critics are quick to politicise every foreign engagement, the symbolism of this visit deserves sober reflection. It wasn’t about subservience or colonial nostalgia. It was an affirmation of mutual respect, professional excellence, and Nigeria’s growing capacity to engage the world on its own terms.

Unfortunately, there is a popular but dangerous misconception that any cooperation with Western nations represents neo-colonial dependence. This mindset, disguised as patriotism, is in fact strategic illiteracy. True sovereignty is not measured by whom you refuse to engage, but by your ability to partner with powerful nations as an equal while preserving independent decision-making.

The Commandant of one of the world’s most prestigious military academies did not visit Nigeria as a benefactor to a client state. He came as a peer, recognising that the NDA—after over six decades and more than 20,000 graduates—has matured into a globally respected institution, currently hosting cadets from 14 allied countries. The French visit was earned, not solicited. It was Nigeria’s capacity, not its dependency, that drew attention.

Look to the Sahel for caution. The Alliance of Sahel States—Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger—chose to expel Western forces and sever partnerships with France, only to replace them with heavy dependence on Russia’s Wagner Group, now rebranded as Africa Corps. The results? Escalating insecurity, deteriorating governance, and rising civilian casualties.

They traded one external dependency for another, gaining rhetorical sovereignty but losing absolute control. This is not the path Nigeria should emulate. The smart path is the one that balances partnerships, diversifies alliances, and builds capacity across multiple fronts without ideological rigidity.

Against this backdrop, Nigeria’s geography and regional role demand multilingual, multinational competence. We are surrounded by Francophone nations, including Niger, Chad, Cameroon, and Benin. For our Armed Forces, proficiency in French isn’t a luxury; it’s an operational necessity for border coordination, intelligence sharing, and peacekeeping.

The NDA–ESM collaboration directly addresses this need. It enhances leadership development, language proficiency, and training methodology. Far from diminishing Nigeria’s sovereignty, it strengthens our defence capabilities and reinforces our regional leadership role in ECOWAS, the African Union, and United Nations missions.

Partnerships like these are not about dependency; they are about mutual learning and growth. French cadets will also gain exposure to African security dynamics and cultural diversity—critical experiences for future global officers.

To this end, Nigeria’s defence and foreign policy must be guided by one principle: national interest, not by emotional reactions to historical grievances, nor by blind alignment with any global bloc. The question we must always ask is: Does this partnership serve Nigeria’s long-term security and development objectives?

If the NDA–ESM partnership enhances training quality, language capability, and international recognition, then it passes that test. And this is only one among many—Nigeria maintains robust defence relations with the United States, United Kingdom, China, Russia, India, and several African nations. Our policy is not “either/or.” It is strategic flexibility—extracting value from multiple sources while maintaining autonomy.

Real patriotism is not loud rejection of foreign engagement; it is the quiet, steady pursuit of excellence. It means making pragmatic decisions that strengthen our national capacity, regardless of where functional expertise originates. It means wanting Nigerian officers to be among the best trained in the world—and knowing that achieving that standard requires learning from global best practices.

The NDA–ESM partnership exemplifies this approach: selective, strategic, and mutually beneficial. It reflects confidence, not submission. It reflects maturity, not dependence.

As other nations in the Sahel drift into isolationism and populist anti-Western rhetoric, Nigeria is charting a more balanced course—engaging without capitulating, cooperating without compromising sovereignty. That’s not weakness; that’s wisdom. It’s the kind of leadership Africa urgently needs: autonomy rooted in strength, not isolationism driven by insecurity.

The world’s power dynamics are shifting. Nations that will thrive are those able to build strategic bridges—not walls. Nigeria’s Defence Academy, by opening its gates to peer collaboration, is quietly doing just that.

In a nutshell, the visit of General Charpy to the NDA was more than a diplomatic gesture. It was recognition of excellence, a celebration of partnership, and a demonstration of Nigeria’s growing stature in global military education. It tells a story of a country confident in its identity, secure in its sovereignty, and determined to engage the world on its own terms.

Nigeria’s national interest must come first—not East, not West, but Nigeria first. The NDA’s example shows that by engaging wisely, learning broadly, and acting decisively, we can build a military—and a nation—worthy of our aspirations.

Senator Iroegbu is a security, geopolitics and development analyst. Email: Senator.iroegbu@yahoo.co.uk

Nigeria’s Strategic Partnerships: What the French Military Academy’s Visit to NDA Really Means

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Man killed in love-related fight in Yobe community

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Man killed in love-related fight in Yobe community

By: Zagazola Makama

A 20-year-old man, identified as Jibrin Saidu Lamido, has been killed following a violent altercation over a romantic relationship in Gurdadi village, Yusufari Local Government Area of Yobe State.Sources said that the incident on Tuesday, saying it occurred around 2 a.m. on Monday when the deceased reportedly visited the home of his girlfriend, identified as Saratu Gata, aged 22, in Kalameri village.

An unknown man was said to have arrived at the scene, took the lady away, and challenged the deceased to follow them if he was “truly a man.” A fight subsequently broke out between both men, during which the suspect allegedly attacked Jibrin with a cutlass, inflicting severe injuries on his neck.

Security operatives from Kumaganam Outstation rushed the victim to the General Hospital, Kumaganam, where he was confirmed dead by a medical doctor.

His remains were later released to relatives for burial after an autopsy was conducted.

Police say efforts are ongoing to apprehend the fleeing suspect.

Man killed in love-related fight in Yobe community

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