Buhari, Atiku Salute Sultan Abubakar At 60

Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III

President Muhammadu Buhari has congratulated the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar, on his 60th birthday.

Daily Trust report continues:

Born August 24, 1956 in Sokoto, Abubakar was commissioned into the Nigerian Army as a Second Lieutenant in 1977 and served in the elite Armoured Corps.

He quit the Nigerian Army as a Brigadier General to become the 20th Sultan in November 2006 following the death of his elder brother, Sultan Muhammad Maccido in a plane crash in October.

Presidential spokesman, Femi Adesina, said in a statement that Buhari joined the people and government of Sokoto State, the Muslim community and family members of the sultan to celebrate the unique anniversary.

Buhari said as the head of Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI) and President-General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), the sultan had demonstrated uncommon leadership style, patriotism and wisdom in his consistent advocacy for security, peace and unity of Nigeria.

Buhari expressed the belief that the wise counsel and support of the royal father on issues of good governance, girl-child education, infant and child mortality and agriculture had greatly enriched his administration’s efforts to improve the livelihood of Nigerians.

In his own message, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar describes the Sultan as a remarkable man of peace.

He praised the courage and sincerity of the Sultan for always forcefully condemning violent extremism, which has created negative perception problems for Islam and Muslims in Nigeria and elsewhere in the world.