TRIBUTE TO ENGR. IBRAHIM KHALEEL INUWA, FNSE, FAEng., FNIM, OFR
- An Engineering Icon and a Mentor
By an elder of the Branch; Engr. Mustafa Balarabe Shehu
Perhaps the most certain phenomenon of human life but most times coming as a surprise and even shock, is death. This can be explained by the fact that Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) the creator of all beings has kept secret to himself alone, the time, place and cause for such death for each human being. Of course, the level of shock is also proportional to the level of intimacy the deceased has to the person concerned.
That was what exactly happened on Monday 11th May at 2.14pm when the daughter of Ibrahim Khaleel Inuwa (IK as we fondly call him) called to confirm to me about the death of their father about an hour earlier. I was driving from my house in Kano to visit a cousin whom we had prior appointment with. I was shocked to the bone marrow, to say the least! I had to park my car for a while to regain my composure and come to terms with the reality of the shocking news. As a Muslim I had to recite a part of a verse in the holy Quran that says ‘Inna lillahi wa inna ilaihi raji’un’ (verily we are all from Allah and unto him we shall all return) a couple of times before I could gain some level of composure. I then asked myself, what can I do before I go to the house for the funeral arrangement? It immediately dawns on me that I have many things in common with IK in spite of the 14-year age gap between us.
1. We are both from the old Kano City, therefore I know many of his relatives, friends and acquaintances
2. We are both Old Boys of Government College Kaduna and therefore members of KADOBA
3. We are both alumni of Ahmadu Bello University. He graduated 1973 while I graduated 1985.
4. We are both engineers and are playing active roles in the activities of the Nigerian Society of Engineers. He served as NSE President in 1989 and 1990 and I served the same position in 2012 and 2013.
These 4 constituencies I have in common with IK made a lot people to identify me as a loyal junior brother to IK as these define more than 80% of his activities during his lifetime.
I had to take the courage of calling some of his friends in Kano, first of whom is Dr. Shamsuddeen Usman, who has been his friend right from primary school days to that fateful day. Shamsuddeen is also the Chairman of the Kano/Jigawa Professionals Forum, a forum comprising of professional from Kano and Jigawa who have made it to the apex leadership position of their Professional Association/Body. IK and I are members of the KPF. I then called the leadership of NSE at Kano and national levels, Engr. Mohammed Adamu and
Babagana Mohammed respectively, as well as the COREN President, Engr. Ali A. Rabi’u who was also locked down in Kano for the last 6 weeks. Engr. Rabi’u was also shocked and confused on hearing the news. When he learnt that I was around his area at the time, he requested and pleaded with me to come through his house so that we can go together in my car for the funeral. I believe he wanted to be saved the trouble of driving while in confused state.
On our way to the residence of IK, my mind was just wandering of a possibility of a false news or may be I was dreaming, even though I heard the news from his daughter, Hauwa who is professionally close to me having read electrical engineering just like her sister Amina. Both have gone through tutelage in my office some years back. IK used to call them my daughters or sometimes my students as they read electrical engineering as myself and not the mechanical engineering he read. As we approached the house, I saw many cars parked and people in very sober mood. On reaching the house, I confirmed beyond doubt that indeed IK was no more as his body was being prepared for the funeral prayers. We offered our Asr prayer around 3.50pm in the mosque opposite his house where IK used to be the Imam. The body was brought out for the funeral prayer at 4.10pm. The prayer took about 15minutes after which the body was accompanied to the graveyard immediately. By 4.50pm, the body was buried, and we all departed to our various homes because of the covid-19 restrictions on gatherings to receive condolences. From that time up the time of writing this piece, I have been receiving calls for condolence by the minute, from many people especially engineers and KADOBA members from all over the country.
Inna lillahi wa Inna Ilaihi raji’un…. May Allah reward abundantly, all those who participated in the funeral as well as all those who called or/and prayed from their homes, cities, towns and villages for the repose Engr. Ibrahim Inuwa’s soul. May Allah reward his good deeds, forgive his shortcomings and admit him in aljanat Firdaus.
While I have been hearing about him earlier, my first physical encounter with IK was in December 1990 when I attended my first NSE Conference in Jos. In those days, people collect their NSE certificates during conferences and I was happy when I learnt that I could collect my own there having successfully gone through the interview and exams earlier in the year. IK Inuwa was the President then. One cannot escape seeing the charming and elegant personality in him. An engineer and leader full of life, smiling always, eloquent and captivating his audience while speaking. That was Ibrahim Khaleel Inuwa! He radiates engineering to anyone that comes close to him. I saw in him a mentor and therefore started getting closer to him, especially when I became the Chairman of NSE Kano Branch (2000-2001), thereby frequenting his office and house discussing engineering and national issues. He guided me through my tenure as Chairman, making sure that Kano Branch came back to the centre stage in the affairs of NSE nationally. As a Branch, we received the ‘Most Improved Branch Award’ in 2001 due to such guidance among other efforts. His office in
Kano can qualify as a Showroom or Museum for Awards and Accolades, as all the 4 walls of the office are decorated from top to bottom with such Awards, Certificates, souvenirs and accolades. There is no way anyone can stay with IK for 15 minutes without him preaching engineering to the person. To him, engineering is the solution to everything in life.
Before the 2005 AGM of the NSE, my initial intention was to contest for EXCO Member, until Engr. Emeka Ezeh, the then Deputy President advised me to contest for the position of Vice President. IK was the first person I consulted, and he jumped at it with jubilation and gave me the go-ahead to contest for the VP position. The decision attracted some challenges which were subsequently overcomed. I won that election and the rest is now history. One of his best moments in my relationship with him was when I won election as Deputy President in Owerri in 2009. The smile of the smiling IK became broader and was so happy that Kano will produce another NSE president after him. When we came back to Kano, he organised a dinner in my honour to celebrate the election victory. Senior members of the profession and other Who is Who in Kano were invited to attend. His doors at home and office were always open to me for guidance, support and encouragement throughout my tenure as President of NSE (2012-2013). That has greatly helped me in leading a peaceful NSE that was rancour-free and full of achievements.
May Allah reward his good deeds, forgive his shortcomings and admit him in aljanat Firdaus.
At the International Engineering Arena, IK was also at the forefront. He led the International Affairs Committee of the Nigerian Society of Engineers from 2006 to 2019 ie for 14 years. He attended more than 20 conferences organised by the World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO) and many similar conferences in Africa especially in Ghana, Sierra Leone, Kenya, Egypt, Tunisia, Zimbabwe, Malawi and Zambia. He played key role in the establishment of the West African Federation of Engineering Organization (WAFEO) in March 2012 in Accra, Ghana. He also played an important role in rebranding and unification of African Engineering Institutions under the umbrella of the Federation of African Engineering Organizations (FAEO), which took place at the General Assembly in Nairobi, Kenya in May 2012. It was at that GA that South Africa and Nigeria were elected into the President and President-Elect positions. Martin van Veelen from South Africa and I were subsequently given the opportunity to serve in those positions respectively. The GA also took a decision to have the FAEO Secretariat hosted in Abuja, Nigeria. When I took over as FAEO President (2015-2016), Engr. Inuwa was always there for me giving me the appropriate guidance, support and encouragement that led to my success in that position. He attended all meetings and functions that is requested of him, including the signing of MoU between the FAEO and the African Union Commission on 15th December 2016.
May Allah reward his good deeds, forgive his shortcomings and admit him in aljanat Firdaus.
At WFEO level, IK participated in the activities of many committees, especially the Energy Committee. He never goes unnoticed wherever he decides to be. He was so glad to learn that my colleagues from other African countries have endorsed my candidature to contest for the position of Executive Vice President of WFEO. He had several meetings with me in his office to map out strategies to win the election in Melbourne, Australia in his position as my mentor and self-appointed Director of Campaign. On reaching Melbourne, IK was restless throughout the days leading to the General Assembly. I had to be telling him to take it easy as all will be well based on our earlier interactions with the engineers from the different continental blocks. When the result of the election was announced that I won at the General Assembly on 23rd November 2019, he was among the first to congratulate me. He was smiling broadly and continuously, displaying his inner happiness. He also posted the election result immediately to the engineering fraternity in Nigeria, the various groups in Kano as well as the KADOBA group. Almost everyone got to know about the election result through him. That was IK, who gives his all, to anything he decides to involve himself in.
May Allah reward his good deeds, forgive his shortcomings and admit him in aljanat Firdaus.
IK was my senior colleague and Mentor but many times he relates with me as friend, confidant, sharing with me many of his personal issues. I was talking with Engr. KA Ali and Engr. AA Rabiu on that fateful day that our council meetings and conferences will lose a lot of glamour and humour due to absence of IK. I also learnt that his classmate Engr. EJS Uujamhan took almost 3 days to recover from the shock of his death. In fact, the whole engineering family will feel the loss. He relates with people of all ages very freely and likes people who take challenges in order to excel in any given field. His standard is high and expects everyone also to aim to achieve high. He does not give room for mediocrity.
While we feel pained by his loss, we must take solace in the fact that he died peacefully during the holy month of Ramadan while worshiping Allah through fasting. This is certainly a good way to end a life. May Allah give us and his immediate family the fortitude to bear the loss.
May Allah reward his good deeds, forgive his shortcomings and admit him in aljanat Firdaus.
Engr. Mustafa Balarabe Shehu, FNSE, FSESN
Executive Vice President, WFEO
Past President, FAEO
Past President, NSE
18th May 2020.