Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, former Governor of Gongola State (now Adamawa and Taraba States), former PDP National Chairman and former Minister of Industry under the Sani Abacha administration, has passed away at the age of 90.
He died on Saturday at his residence in Abuja during an illness.
Shortly after his death was announced, President Bola Tinubu describes his death as the end of a remarkable chapter in Nigeria’s political and economic history.
Tinubu said Alhaji Tukur was a towering figure whose distinguished career spanned public administration, governance, industry, politics and pan-African business leadership.
Born on September 15, 1935, Alhaji Tukur rose to national prominence as General Manager of the Nigerian Ports Authority from 1975 to 1982, where he helped modernise port operations and improve Nigeria’s maritime sector.
The deceased subsequently distinguished himself in the private sector as Chairman of BHI Holdings and the DADDO Group of Companies, conglomerates with interests in manufacturing, agriculture, logistics and trading, and served as Federal Minister of Industries under the administration of General Sani Abacha from 1993 to 1995.
On the continental stage, Alhaji Tukur was an eloquent champion of Africa’s economic renaissance. As Executive President of the African Business Roundtable and Chairman of the NEPAD Business Group, he was a relentless advocate for intra-African trade, private sector-led growth and sustainable development.
Tukur was the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from March 2012 to January 2014.
Tinubu said: “Alhaji Tukur was urbane, generous and deeply rooted in the values of integrity and service that the Adamawa Emirate and the nation hold dear. He was a man of big ideas and bold enterprise who believed in Nigeria’s limitless potential. Nigeria will sorely miss his wise counsel and fatherly guidance.”
The President extends his condolences to the Tukur family, to the Fombina Emirate of Adamawa, the government and people of Adamawa State, and to the entire political and business communities in Nigeria and across Africa.
Also, Governor Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa State has expressed sadness over the death of the politician, describing it as “a monumental loss to Adamawa and Nigeria.”
