death_date religion children parents birth_date known_for article_title name
1988 1903 sufi islam sa'adu abubakar usman shehu 1903 sultan of sokoto siddiq abubakar iii
 siddiq abubakar iii
siddiq abubakar iii

sir siddiq abubakar iii -lrb- 1903 -- 1988 -rrb- was a nigerian muslim leader .
he served as the sultan of sokoto between 1938 and 1988 .
~ nigerian muslim leader , sultan of sokoto .
~ born at dange , on 15 march 1903 , same day on which the british finally subdued the sokoto caliphate ~ son of usman shehu , grandson of mu'azu , direct descendent of usman dan fodio .
abubakar is the fourth heir to the two century-old throne founded by his ancestor , sheikh usman dan fodio -lrb- 1754-1817 -rrb- leader of the maliki school of islam and the qadiri branch of sufism .
~ had islamic education ~ held several administrative posts before succeeding his uncle , hassan ibn muazu , at age of 35 ~ 1931 , he was appointed a local authority councillor of the sokoto native administration .
~ head of talata mafara ~ he distinguished himself by his administrative competence and the able way he dealt with appeals from traditional courts and supervised district and village heads .
~ saurdauna of sokoto until 17 june 1938 , when he became sultan abubakar iii ~ as the 17th sultan of sokoto and sarkin musulmi , he became the most important islamic personality south of the sahara , and highly respected .
~ leader of 50 million adherents of the islamic faith in west africa .
~ although he did not occupy a visible political position in nigeria , his de facto political influence was considerable and throughout his life he worked towards the promotion of nigeria 's unity , he used his decisive influence over public affairs for the political and social advancement of nigeria as one nation .
~ he contributed a great deal to the maintenance of order and calm among the population of the then northern region after the 1966 coup in which sir ahmadu bello was killed .
during the civil war , he helped to mobilise men for the federal forces .
~ abubakar saw the development of his country in a different light from many of his more conservative co-religionists .
he encouraged further education for females and voting for women in purdah , and urged the liberation of women in these respects .
as a result the women teacher 's training college in sokoto was founded .
~ his faith in and identification with the quest for knowledge led to his appointment as chancellor of the university of nigeria , nsukka , which awarded him an honorary lld degree .
~ during his life , however , abubakar , in common with other traditional rulers , witnessed several inroads into his power base , such as loss of control over the local courts , prisons , and police .
~ but because of his mature outlook he did not allow these developments to affect his concern for the welfare of his people .
~ he saw these changes as inevitable in the wider context of the country 's politics and in the overall interest of nigeria 's development .
~ when northern people 's congress was formed in 1951 and his support was needed to launch the new party and mobilise the northern people for the independence movement , he readily gave it .
~ abubakar took the post of minister withough portfolio in the northern regional government in order to give the new administration headed bu sir ahmadu bello .
~ he stood head and shoulders above the politicians of all hues , in a way that allowed him to be accessible to all .
~ when party politics became divisive he stepped out of it to safeguard his role as the spiritual leader , but continued to be looked up to by other leaders on certain governmental issues .
~ he was knighted by the british in 1944 and after nigeria attained independence was made grand commander of the order of niger by the federal government .
~ he had great love of poetry and , as a traditionalist , kept the culture of his people alive while recognising the need to develop their potential and achieve progress in the modern world .
~ he ruled the emirate for one of the longest reigns in its history , from 17 june 1938 to 1 november 1988 when he died , having celevrated only four months earlier his fiftieth year in the throne .
~ he left behind 52 children and 320 direct grandchildren .
sultan abubakar iii is best remembered by his compatriots as a religious leader who rose above the religious dissensions of his day and throughout his life played the role of peace-maker and father of all .
