If Nigeria were a country in a hurry to build strong, united country and develop itself, Umaru Altine would have been recognized in his time as an instant hero. Over seventy years ago, he was daring enough to take the novel, heroic step which no other Nigerian has taken since the amalgamation of the Sothern and Northern Protectorates in 1914. The step was to shape a better country we know today as Nigeria. Hon Femi Kehinde, a former member of House of Representatives wrote in a recent newspaper article that:
“Umaru Altine, a cattle dealer, had left the Sokoto province to sojourn in Enugu. There he married an Igbo Lady, Esther, and was president of the Enugu branch of the youth wing of the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC). He was a completely detribalized Nigerian”.
“As a descendant of Uthman Dan Fodio, Altine could have equally emerged as Sultan of Sokoto, one day, but he preferred the life of trading, travel, and adventure. He had earlier joined the Army and worked briefly with the Railways.
He had also played politics in the Tambuwal District of the Sokoto Province, before his eventual sojourn in the coal city of Enugu. He was handsome, always dressed impeccably, and had a magnetic aura.”
In a post-colonial African country where tribal differences and regional separatist tendencies were so high that a bloody civil war had to be fought in which over a million people died, a man of his achievements in 1950s came as something of a surprise.
As a descendant of Uthman Dan Fodio, a scion of the Sokoto Caliphate, he could have stayed there in his native Sifawa home, hoping to emerge one day as the Sultan of Sokoto. But he preferred the world of trading, travel, adventure and politics. He joined the army and later worked with the railways staying on both jobs very briefly. In Enugu, he wore the Babban Riga, as well as a Turban. On other occasions he wore suits as the event demanded. He was willing to adjust while retaining his identity. A noble, free and simple spirit was evident in him. This Prince smoked and loved Nsala soup with fresh fish, a popular meal of the Enugu Igbo and had a high sense of personal hygiene and a good command of English. Handsome, always impeccably dressed he turned out to be a politician who attracted people magnetically. These talents and personal attributes recommended him to Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe, the leading nationalist politician of Igbo extraction.
Altine got married an Igbo lady, named Esther who supported him as much as Zik did to emerge as president of the Enugu branch of the youth wing of the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC). This was the party that sponsored his ambition to become the first democratically elected Mayor of Enugu.
It was a symbiotic relationship between the two great men – Zik and Altine. Zik himself had just been given a raw deal in the Western Regional House of Assembly where he was blocked from emerging as the first elected Premier of the Region by some irredentist Yoruba parliamentarians. He rushed back to his Eastern Region, where a government led by Eyo Ita was in place. He led the assault that ousted that government from office. In that fight, Umaru Altine who had become very influential in the NCNC in the Eastern Region as a youth leader also came around as a supporter of Zik. The support he got from Zik to emerge as the first democratically elected Mayor of Enugu in 1952 was reciprocal and expected.
Again when he was due for reelection at the expiration of his first tenure in 1956 a group in his NCNC ganged up to produce D T Iyang to replace him as the NCNC preferred candidate as the Mayor. The indefatigable Altine remained unfazed. He presented himself as an independent candidate and won his election regardless. He remained in office until 1958.
As the Mayor of Enugu, he carved a niche for himself in many respects. In Enugu, he wore the Babban Riga, as well as a Turban. On other occasions he wore suits as the event demanded. He went to Church in Enugu if his duties as Mayor called for it, and went to do the kick off at stadia when occasion demanded. He was completely detribalized and willing to adjust while retaining his identity.
Sadly for all his efforts and sacrifices to build a united cosmopolitan and peaceful Nigeria, nobody talks about him today outside his family. One time Chairman, Enugu North Local Government, Agu Gab invited the Umoru Altine family Sokoto to Enugu in 2004. His efforts can be classified as that of a lonely voice in the wilderness. In the words of the chairman Agu at the time: ‘Our history before that time did not reflect his towering achievement in terms of Nigerian unity. I was going to name a public institution after him, but time did not allow for that. A Street was named after the late Mayor somewhere in the Coal Camp area of Enugu during the First Republic.”
Today nobody knows where the street is located. When men of towering vision are not recognized in a country that needs their sterling qualities, little can be achieved in realizing their dreams.
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