Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa (1 December 1948 – 15 December 2012) was a

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

. He was appointed Deputy Governor of

Kaduna State Kaduna State ( ha, Jihar Kaduna جىِهَر كَدُنا; ff, Leydi Kaduna, script=Latn, ; kcg, Sitet Kaduna) is a state in northern Nigeria. The state capital is its namesake, the city of Kaduna which happened to be the 8th largest city in ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

in July 2005, and returned as Deputy Governor in the April 2007 elections. He was sworn in as Governor on 20 May 2010, replacing former governor

Namadi Sambo Mohammed Namadi Sambo (born 2 August 1954) is a Nigerian politician who was Vice President of Nigeria from 19 May 2010 to 29 May 2015. He previously served as Governor of Kaduna State from 2007 to 2010. Early life Namadi was born on 2 August 19 ...

who had been sworn in as vice president the day before. Yakowa successfully ran for election as Kaduna Governor in the 26 April 2011 polls.

Background

Yakowa was born on 1 December 1948 in Fadan Kagoma,

Jema'a Jema'a (also written ''Ajemaa'' and ''Jama'a'') is a Local Government Area in southern Kaduna State, Nigeria with headquarters at Kafanchan. The Local Government Council is chaired by Yunana Barde. It has an area of 1,384 km2 and a population ...

Local Government Area,

. He attended St. Mary’s Secondary School, Fadan Kaje and St. John College,

Kaduna Kaduna is the capital city of Kaduna State, and the former political capital of Northern Region, Nigeria, Northern Nigeria. It is located in north-western Nigeria, on the Kaduna River. It is a trade Centre and a major transportation hub as the ...

, and then was admitted to

Ahmadu Bello University Ahmadu Bello University Zaria is a federal government research university in Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria. ABU was founded on 4 October 1962, as the pioneer university in Northern Nigeria. It was founded and named after the Sardauna of Sokoto, Al ...

Zaria Zaria is a metropolitan city in Nigeria which at the present time lies within four (4) local government areas in Kaduna state; it happens to be the capital city to the Zazzau Emirate Council, and one of the original seven Hausa city-states ...

. He graduated with a B. Sc (Social Sciences) in June 1972.

Civil Service career

Yakowa joined the Civil Service of North Central State, serving as Division Officer, Secretary in the Military Governor’s Office, and Local Government Sole Administrator. He rose to Permanent Secretary in the Kaduna State civil service, heading the Ministries of Health, Works and Transport. In 1990, Yakowa transferred to the Federal Civil Service until the administration of General

Sani Abacha Sani Abacha (20 September 1943 – 8 June 1998) was a Nigerian military officer and politician who ruled as the military head of state of Nigeria from 1993 until his death in 1998. He seized power on 17 November 1993 in the last successful c ...

appointed him Commissioner in Kaduna State from 1994 to 1997. Returning to the Federal Civil Service after this posting, he was Director Joint Services at the Ministry of Defense from February 1997 to August 1998, and then a Director at the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development until 14 June 1999, when he was appointed Permanent Secretary and retired.

Political career

Yakowa worked for the

Ahmed Makarfi Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi (born 8 August 1956) is a Nigerian politician and the former Chairman of the People's Democratic Party. He was governor of Kaduna State in Nigeria from 29 May 1999 to 29 May 2007, and was elected Senator for Kaduna North in ...

campaign organization in 2003, helping Governor Makarfi get reelected. He was also chairman of the

Rivers State Rivers State, also known as Rivers, is a state in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria (Old Eastern Region). Formed in 1967, when it was split from the former Eastern Region, Rivers State borders include: Imo to the north, Abia and Akwa Ib ...

Screening Committee for the

People's Democratic Party People's Democratic Party or ''variant thereof'', could refer to: * People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan *People's Democratic Party (Belize) *People's Democratic Party (Bhutan) *People's Democratic Party (Chile) * People's Democratic Party (Dom ...

(PDP) in 2003. Yakowa was appointed Secretary to the Government of Kaduna State in September 2003. He was appointed Deputy Governor of Kaduna State in July 2005, replacing Stephen Shekari, who had died on July 10. In December 2006, he was a contender to be PDP candidate for governor of Kaduna State, but lost out to

. Yakowa ran as the running mate to Namadi Sambo, who was elected as Governor. In December 2009, Yakowa denied claims that state administration was marginalizing Southern Kaduna. He said statements to that effect were "bizarre and mischievous" and said the government was making special efforts to provide social amenities in the area. A southerner himself, he called on the people of the region to stop agitating for a southern governor candidate in the 2011 elections, but to help governor Namadi Sambo gain a second term, and wait for 2015 to get a southern governor. In May 2010, there were rumors that President

Goodluck Jonathan Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan (born 20 November 1957)Lawson Heyford, ''The Source'' (Lagos), 11 December 2006. is a Nigerian politician who served as the President of Nigeria from 2010 to 2015. He lost the 2015 presidential election to fo ...

would nominate Kaduna State governor Namadi Sambo as his vice president, which would cause Yakowa to become governor. If so, he would be the first person from Southern Kaduna and first Christian to become governor in the state, an innovation to which some Northern leaders objected. The rumors proved true and on 20 May 2010, the day after Sambo had become vice-president, Yakowa was sworn in as Kaduna governor. To reassure people in the ethnically and religiously mixed state, he said: "I am governor for all, irrespective of religious or tribal affiliation". Yakowa successfully ran for election as Kaduna Governor in the 26 April 2011 polls on the

(PDP) platform. In a close race, he polled 1,334,319 votes to clinch victory with a difference of 200,755 votes over the

Congress for Progressive Change The Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) was a political party founded in Nigeria in 2009 in preparation for the April 2011 elections. It was the 63rd political party to be founded in the country. In February 2013, the party merged with the A ...

(CPC) candidate, Haruna Sae'ed, who came second with 1,133,564 votes.

Death

On 15 December 2012, the governor died in a helicopter crash along with the former National Security Adviser Gen. Owoye Andrew Azazi (rtd) while flying from

Bayelsa state Bayelsa is one of the states in the South-South region of Nigeria, located in the core of the Niger Delta region. Bayelsa State was created in 1996 and was carved out from Rivers State, making it one of the newest states in the federation. Yenag ...

to Port Harcourt. They were returning from the funeral of Oronto Douglas' father in Beyelsa state. Alhaji Mukhtar Ramalan Yero, the deputy governor of late Yakowa, was sworn-in the following day (Sunday, 16 December 2012) as the state's new governor by the state Chief Judge, Justice Rahila Cudjoe.Yakowa's deputy sworn-in as the new governor. http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/12/yero-sworn-in-as-new-kaduna-state-governor/

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yakowa, Patrick Ibrahim 1948 births 2012 deaths Ahmadu Bello University alumni Governors of Kaduna State Peoples Democratic Party state governors of Nigeria Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in Nigeria Nigerian Christians Politicians from Kaduna State