Kaduna Governor, Uba Sani, laments deplorable condition of Arewa House
... Says they won't allow such a legacy to be destroyed Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna has decried the deplorable condition of Arewa House, describing the situation of the once symbol of unity of the North as unacceptable.
The place houses the Centre for Historical Documentation and Research under Ahmadu Bello University located in Kaduna.
It also occupies a position of a profound significance within the institutional framework of Ahmadu Bello University.
Established in 1970 in honour of the late Sir Ahmadu Bello, Sardauna of Sokoto and Premier of Northern Nigeria, it serves not only as a centre for historical documentation but also as a living archive of ideas, vision, and legacy.
The governor made the lamentation when he received a strong delegation from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria on a courtesy call led by the Vice-Chancellor, Prof Adamu Ahmed.
Governor Sani explained that they all knew the importance of Arewa House as a custodian of Northern Nigeria’s political, intellectual, and cultural heritage.
Sani assured that they would not allow such a legacy to be destroyed as he would rally support for its resuscitation.
Senator UBA Sani, who described ABU as a national treasure, also pledged the readiness of Kaduna government to assist the university in addressing its numerous challenges.
The governor also spoke on the legal debacle between the university and Kaduna government over the Mando lands.
Governor Sani, who pledged to intervene for settling the matter out of court, also stressed the case would soon be resolved in the best interest of both parties.
Uba Sani equally responded to the institution’s infrastructure decay, particularly its internal roads across the two campuses that were constructed in the 1960s.
He also pledged to mobilise key stakeholders for intervention towards the rehabilitation of the roads to ease movements on the campuses.
The highpoint of the visit was the presentation of land allocation papers to the Vice-Chancellor by the governor for staff housing in Sabon Gari and Chikun local government areas of Kaduna State.
Earlier, the Vice-Chancellor, Prof Adamu Ahmed, expressed the university’s profound appreciation for the continuous support of the government and people of Kaduna State to ABU.
Prof Ahmed also acknowledged the quality of leadership that Governor Uba Sani had demonstrated.
He explained that Sani’s empathy, humility, and inclusive governance style had brought about remarkable progress in so short a time.
The Vice-Chancellor described as a major achievement the return of relative peace and security to the state, one that would have seemed unthinkable just three years ago.
“Equally commendable are your people – oriented policies in education, agriculture, and the innovative transportation programmes you have introduced.
“Indeed, over the past few months, I have challenged our faculties to undertake a study of Your Excellency’s governance model, which, by all measures, should serve as a reference for Nigeria’s democratic future”, he said.
The Vice-Chancellor was accompanied on the courtesy call by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Administration, Prof Bello Sabo; and Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Academic, Prof Raymond B Bako.
Others were the Registrar, Rabiu Samaila; the Bursar, Mohammed Bello Amin Gurin; Ag. University Librarian, Dr Abubakar Abdullahi Mohammed; and the Director, Arewa House, Prof Aliyu Yahaya.
They also included the Director, Institute for Development Research and Training (IDR&T), Dr Mohammed Kabir Salihu; and the Director, Public Affairs Directorate, Auwalu Umar.
Others were the Special Assistant to the Vice-Chancellor, Dr Ibrahim Sani Kaita; the President of the Students Representative Council, Comrade Ibrahim Nazeer Kallah; and Senior Information and Protocol Officer, Ahmad Haruna Waziri.
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Public Affairs Directorate,
Office of the Vice-Chancellor,
Ahmadu Bello University,
Zaria (AHW)
Friday, 12th September, 2025
