Barewa College, Hugh Clifford’s beautiful dream

The celebrated Barewa college, Zaira, obtained its uniqueness as a center in the northern Nigeria, where great men  were manufactured because  of the quality of teachers who ensured that discipline  was raised to the highest bar.”

These were the words of an ex-student of the school, who is also the publicity secretary of the old boys association of Barewa college, Zaira, Garba Ali, who is the current General manager of Karama FM radio, Kaduna.

The  college  was at various times known as Katsina Teachers College, Katsina Higher College, Kaduna College, Zaria Secondary school, Government College, Zaria . The school was founded in 1921 by the then   Governor General of Nigeria, Sir Hugh Clifford essentially to train teachers.

While addressing the pioneer students of Barewa college, he said, ‘it is very necessary that the young men who would receive their training in this college and who will thereafter carry the torch of learning and knowledge to all parts of Northern provinces should concentrate all their energies upon the the task that is set on them during their period of training.

According to a former student, Lawal  Ali Garba who had admission number B 2544, Barewa college, Zaira thus provided the answer to the growing demand of the Northern region to recruit Northerners into the civil service.  He disclosed that, that was the reason Barewa college upgraded to Katsina Higher College in 1929 in order to provide the manpower for the region.

According to him, the name Barewa was adopted in 1971 signifying the likelihood that Barewa college metamorphosed from one phase to the other just like the movement of gazelle.

It was learnt that all students admitted into the school were given admission numbers from Barewa No 1.

Ordinarily, the Barewa college would have been just like any other secondary school in Northern Nigeria and even the entire country,  but this school is unique.  According to  Garba Ali,  ‘this is the only school in the country that has produced five presidents and about 20 governors as well as over 50 ministers.  Among the governors are Nasir Ahmed El-rufai B2861, governor of Kaduna State,  Sule Lamido B 1528, former governor of Jigawa State, Saidu Barda B860, former governor of  Katsina state. While, some of the ministers were Adamu Ciroma B853, Professor Jibril Aminu B929, Professor Iya Abubakar B674  and so many eminent Nigerians.

He told the Nigerian Tribune that the five Nigerian leaders were Alhaji Abubakar Tarawa Balewa B145 ,the first Prime Minister of Nigeria, who ruled from  1960 to 1966, General Murtala Mohammed B941,  who ruled  from 1975 to 1976, General Yakubu Gowon B783, who ruled from 1966 to 1975, Alhaji Shehu Shagari B 394,  who ruled from 1979 to 1983 and Alhaji Umaru Yar’adua B2465, who ruled from 2007 to 2010.

A former student of Barewa college who is also the Publicity Secretary of Barewa Old Boys Association (BOBA), Garba Ali also said that the late Sardaunan of Sokoto and Premier of the Norther Region, Sir Ahmadu Bello B87, as well as the first civilian  Governor of the Northern region  Sir Kashim Ibrahim B73 and first military governor of the region, Major General Hassan Katsina B669,   were all products of the school.

Also, a former student of the school, Sani Mohammed revealed that the school had produced about three Chief Justices of Nigeria. He gave the names of the three CJN as Justice Idris Kutigi B1384 ,Justice Lawal Uwais B964 and Justice Mohammed Bello B507.  A former president of the Court of Appeal, Justice Mamman Nasir B464 also attended the prestigious school.  He also told the Nigerian Tribune that  the college had produced four Secretaries to the Government of the Federation and these were Alhaji Liman Ciroma B514, Alhaji Shehu Musa B753, Alhaji Aliyu Mohammed B952 and Alhaji Adamu Fika B653.

Also, it was learnt that the college had produced four former Chief of Army Staff  and they were Major General Hassan Usman B669, Major General Alwali Kazir B1563, Lt General Luka Yusuf  B3166 and Lt General Abdulrahaman Dambazau B2474.

Looking back, Garba Ali, who was at Bello Kabara hostel and now the General Manager of Karama FM radio, Kaduna, remarked that it was an honour and a mark of  respect for one to be counted as an ex-student.   Ali, who wrote his final exams  in the school in the early 80s attributed the uniqueness of the school to the quality of teachers who ensured that  discipline was the watch word.

‘ We had committed teachers who  spent their precious time to impact knowledge on the students, he recalled.

He also recalled that  school rules were obeyed to the letter without compromise, saying,’ any students that broke the school rules was  punished, no matter the status of his parents.

Findings gathered that many interventions by old boys as well as government agencies  who have  donated generously had led  to the present state of development in Barewa college. The most recently of such interventions were  the sponsoring of computer programmes for the teachers, as well as sponsoring of the teachers to undergo training at the  National Teachers Institute (NTI). Others interventions were  the building and equipping of Sir Kashim Ibrahim computer centre by the Universal Basic Education (UBEC)  at the cost of N80 million.

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