Umaru Musa Yar’adua was born in Katsina Town, Katsina State on 16 August 1951. He started his primary education at Rafukka Primary School, Katsina in 1958. He left Rafukka for Dutsinma Boarding Primary School in 1962 from where he completed his primary education in 1964.
Between 1965-1969, Umaru Yar’adua was at Government College, Keffi in present-day Nasarawa State for his secondary education. He then moved to the famous Barewa College, Zaria for his Higher School Certificate between 1970-1971. For his university education, Yar’adua attended the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) Zaria from 1972-1975 where he obtained the B.Sc Education/Chemistry. He returned to the same University from 1978-1980 for his M.Sc Degree in Analytical Chemistry.
Umaru Yar’adua’s working career began at the Holy Child College, Lagos for the mandatory one year National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) between 1975 and 1976. He was a Lecturer at the Katsina College of Arts, Science and Technology, Zaria between 1976 and 1979. He moved to Katsina Polytechnic, also as a Lecturer in 1979 and was there until 1983 when he left the public service.
Yar’adua’s movement to the private sector started at Sambo Farms Ltd in Funtua, Katsina State as its pioneer General Manager between 1983-1989. He served as a Board Member, Katsina State Farmers’ Supply Company between 1984-1985, Member Governing Council of both Katsina College of Arts, Science and Technology Zaria and Katsina Polytechnic between 1978-1983, Board Chairman of Katsina State Investment and Property Development Company (KIPDECO) between 1994-1996.
Umaru Yar’adua served as a Director of many companies, including Habib Nigeria Bank Ltd. 1995-1999; Lodigiani Nigeria Ltd. 1987-1999, Hamada Holdings, 1983-1999; and Madara Ltd. Vom, Jos, 1987-1999. He was Chairman, Nation House Press Ltd, Kaduna between 1995-1999.
Yar’adua’s foray into party politics began as a Lecturer when he became an active member and mobilizer for the defunct Peoples’ Redemption Party (PRP). During the Transition Programme of President Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, Yar’adua was one of the foundation members of the Peoples’ Front, a political association under the leadership of his elder brother, the late Major-General Shehu Musa Yar’adua. That association later fused to form the Social Democratic Party (SDP). Yar’adua was a member of the 1988 Constituent Assembly. He was a member of the party’s National Caucus and the SDP State Secretary in Katsina and contested the 1991 Governorship election, but lost to the candidate of the National Republican Convention.
At the inception of General Abdulsalam Abubakar’s transition in 1998, Yar’adua founded the K34 political association which later teemed up to form the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). He contested and won election as Governor of Katsina State in 1999 and was re-elected in 2003.
(culled from http://www.yaradua2007.com)
In December 2006, Yar'Adua became the presidential candidate of the ruling PDP for the April 2007 presidential election through the scheming of the incumbent President Olusegun Obasanjo. He later won the presidential election with 70% of the votes, becoming Nigeria's first university educated leader in 40 years. On June 28, 2007, Yar'Adua publicly declared is assets to be NGN856,452,892 and became the first Nigerian President to do so.
He delights in referring to himself as a servant leader with the utmost regard for the rule of law, but his Achilles' heel has been his health. In March 2007 just before the April election, he was flown to Germany for medical reasons. He was absent at the United Nations General Assembly Meetings in September 2009, he had to travel to Saudi Arabia for a brief treatment. Currently, he is still in Saudi Arabia receiving treatment for pericarditis (inflamation of the pericardium, the fibrous sac around the heart) since November 23, 2009.
Of his seven point agenda for the development of the country, which are -
1. Adequate provision of power and energy,
2. Better food security and agriculture,
3. Creation of wealth and employment,
4. Provision of better mass transportation system (special emphasis on Rail),
5. Better land reform
6. Better security,
7. Qualitative and functional educational system
He achieved none, in fact some of the issues the have gone worse.
The promise of 6000MW electricity generation by the end of 2009 was unfulfilled. With the aid of the bank turmoil and recent global economic woes, the agricultural sector is worse off than ever and unemployment has increased. The roads are still bad except in Lagos and Abuja for obvious non-Yar'Adua initiated reasons. No change in the contentious 1978 Land Use Act. And insecurity has never been this high since the civil war days, even the Niger Delta amnesty is being threatened by inconsistency on the side of the government. The educational system is still as bad as before the present administration.
Due to the Supreme Court ruling that the Federal Ministries of Nigeria had 14 days, counting from 22 January 2010, to decide whether Yar'Adua is still capable of discharging the functions of his office on the testimony of five doctors including his personal physician, it is being rumoured that the Yar'Adua will be back in very soon.
UPDATE: He died on 5th May, 2010
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