Iya Abubakar was born on the 14th of December, 1934. Though he is in the class of Nigeria’s elite politicians; ranging from the multiple cabinet level appointments he received during the Nigerian Second Republic, and Senatorial positions he enjoyed for Adamawa North from May 1999 to May 2007. Iya Abubakar is actually more renowned as an Academic; the Professor is a force to be reckoned with in Nigeria’s class of Mathematicians; He has been referred to in one biography as ‘The Highly Talented Cambridge Mathematician’.
Early Life, Education and Academic Career
Iya Abubakar received his education in some of Nigeria’s most prestigious institutions of his time at different levels. He was educated at Barewa College, University College Ibadan (presently referred to as the University of Ibadan) and earned a PhD at the University of Cambridge. One of the most remarkable achievements, however, was the fact that Iya Abubakar rose to the rank of Professor before he turned 30. He actually was appointed as a Professor of Mathematics at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, at the age of 28. In the years 1965-1966, He worked as a visiting professor at the University of Michigan in 1965-66. In 1967, he was appointed as Professor of Mathematics at Ahmadu Bello University as earlier stated, and He held this position until 1975, as well as a visiting professorship at the City University of New York from 1971-72. In 1975, he was appointed the Vice-Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University, a position he held until 1978. Abubakar was a director of the Central Bank of Nigeria from 1972 to 1975.
Iya: Intelligence, Administration and the Little Mix of Politics
After the regime of Lt-Gen. Olusẹgun Ọbasanjọ handed power back to an elected government in 1979, Abubakar was appointed the Federal Minister of Defence, holding this office until 1982. From 1993 to 2005, he was the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of Council of the University of Ibadan, his Alma Mater. In the late 1990s, he served as director of the National Mathematical Centre at Abuja and chaired both the National Manpower Commission of Nigeria and the non-governmental Africa International Foundation for Science and Technology.
Abubakar Iya was elected Senator for the Adamawa North constituency of Adamawa State, Nigeria at the start of the Nigerian Fourth Republic, running on the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) platform. He took office on 29 May 1999. He was reelected in April 2003. After taking his seat in the Senate in June 1999 he was appointed to committees on Public Accounts, Banking & Currency (chairman), Commerce and Finance & Appropriation. Abubakar has also chaired the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriation and the Senate Committee on Science and Technology.
Iya: Astronomical Figure
In addition to being a Fellow of the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications in the United Kingdom, He is also a fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society of the United Kingdom, a Fellow of the Nigeria Computer Society, a Fellow of the Nigerian Academy of Science and a Fellow, New York Academy of Science. He has also been coroneted as the Galadima of Mubi in His native, Adamawa State.
Some of his notable publications that made remarkable contributions to his field of study include at least, the following:
- Abubakar, Iya (1961). “Disturbance due to a line source in a semi-infinite transversely isotropic elastic medium”
- Abubakar, Iya (1962). “Motion of the surface of a transversely isotropic half-space excited by a buried line source”. Abubakar, Iya (1962). “Free vibrations of a transversely isotropic plate”. Abubakar, Iya (1962). “Scattering of plane elastic waves at rough surfaces.
- Abubakar, Iya (1963). “Scattering of plane elastic waves at rough surfaces. II
In recognition of his outstanding contributions to the Academia, Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, named its Computer Centre after him; the IYA ABUBAKAR COMPUTER CENTRE. The Bauchi State Government, also named its IT Centre, built with the aid of the USAID to service the North East Zone after Him; The IYA ABUBAKAR RESOURCE CENTRE.
Iya Abubakar was awarded an award of Excellence by the Nigerian Institute of Physics. He was also awarded the Presidential Gold Medal, given to the fifty most outstanding Nigerians in the Fiftieth Anniversary Celebrations of Nigeria’s Independence on 1st October, 2010.
References
Wikipedia
Featured image source: NorthernLife