The body of former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Abba Sayyadi Ruma, was Sunday laid to rest at Dan-marna cemetery in Katsina.
The burial was preceded by a prayer at the G.R.A Mosque, Katsina, and attended by members of the deceased’s family, friends, associates and hundreds of well wishers from different parts of the country.
At the funeral were Director-General Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN) Dr. Mansur Liman, DG of SMEDAN, Dr. Dikko Radda, members of the Katsina state House of Assembly, Secretary to the State Government Alhaji Mustafa Inuwa, traditional title holders and members of the business community.
The prayer session was led by a renowned Kano-based Imam, Sheikh Aminu Daurawa.
The deceased was variously described by sympathisers as a diligent public servant and a patriot that had contributed to national development in different capacities.
Speaking on his impression of the deceased in Abuja, Blueprint Publisher, Alhaji Mohammed Idris Malagi, said the late former minister was a gift to the state and the country in general.
“I was shattered when I learnt of his demise but consoled by the fact that Allah gives and takes life when He decrees. We do not have control over that.
“The Abba Ruma I knew was a gift not only to Katsina, his home state, but Nigeria as a whole. The late Malam Ruma was a good friend, an embodiment of intelligence, industry and above all humility.
“He was one individual always willing to lend a helping hand to anyone that came his way. Malam Abba Ruma was very hardworking and would always add value to any given task or assignment. My joy is that he was always deploying his intellect to the right use in the service of humanity.
“From information available to me, the gathering today clearly tells the kind of person Abba Ruma is. Well, he came and played his own part. May Allah forgive his shortcomings and grant him Aljana Firdaos as his eternal abode and comfort his family and friends,” Malagi said.
After a successful career in the civil service and politics, Ruma retired to a quiet life as a private entrepreneur and proprietor of various institutions of higher learning.
Aged 59, Abba Sayyadi Ruma died Wednesday after a brief illness at a London hospital.
He is survived by a wife and eight children.
