ABUBAKAR, Alhaji
Better known as Sir Tafawa Balewa, this Nigerian author, linguist and statesman was born in Bauchi Province in northern Nigeria in 1912. He was educated in various Nigerian schools before attending the London School of Education in England. He returned to Nigeria as an education oflicer but soon entered politics. He was appointed to the first Northern House of Assembly and then elected to the Federal House of Representatives in Lagos. After serving as chief minister since 1957, Sir Tafawa Balewa became the first federal prime minister of independent Nigeria in 1960. He was assassinated in 1966. His works included Nigeria Speaks (1964) and Shaihu Umar, a Hausa novel, which was eventually translated into English and published in 1967, twelve years after its original appearance.