.Inlaw paid N.5m, 10 cows
By Ummi Ismaeel, Minna
The former Military President, General Ibrahim
Badamasi Babangida (IBB), on Friday, May
12, 2017, gave out his youngest daughter,
Halima, in marriage to her Gombe State
heartthrob, Awwal Lawal Abdullahi, for N500, 000
and 10 cows as dowry.
Security was tightened as early as 7am on all
the roads leading to the Uphill Mansion of the
former military president as vehicles plying the
roads were thoroughly searched and every
available space within and outside the
residence filled to capacity with visitors and
vehicles before 1pm ahead of the wedding prayer
scheduled for 2:30pm.
The early callers for the wedding were the
immediate past President, Dr. Goodluck Ebele
Jonathan, and wife, Patience. Others are Jigawa
State former PDP governor, Sule Lamido; Delta
State former Governor, Dr. Emmanuel
Uduaghan; Sokoto State former
governor, Alhaji Attahiru Bafawara;
Bauchi State ex-governor, Isah Yuguda;
Mahmud Shinkafi; Katsina State former governor,
Ibrahim Shema; Abubakar Dakingari, Professor
Monday Osunbor, and Ogun State former governor,
Otunba Gbenga Daniel.
Other personalities include businessman, Alhaji
Aliko Dangote; General Garba Duba (rtd),
Senator Magoro, Olu of Kuta, Oba Hamid
Adekunle, former PDP Spokesman, Professor
Alkali; Gen. Aliyu Gusau, Senator Ben Obi,
Chairman, UBA, Tony Elumelu, Dr. Okwesilieze
Nwodo; wife of Ooni of Ife, Olori, Wuraola
Ogunwusi, the former FCT Minister, Alhaji
Modibo, Alhaji Yayale Ahmed and Senator
Sanusi Dagash.
Former Senate President, Senator
Anyim Pius Anyim, Niger State ex-
governor, Dr. Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu;
former Chief Justice, Justice Idris Legbo
Kutigi, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, AVM
Hamza Abdullahi, the son of the former Military
President, Alhaji Mohammed Abacha, and his
wife; Anambra State former Governor,
Chukwuemeka Ezeife, and former Minister
of Works, Mike Onolemenme.
Marriage rites for Halima and Lawal started
at exactly 2:30pm when some dignitaries
led by General M I Wushishi; Governor of
Gombe State, Alhaji Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo,
and others left the sitting room of IBB for the
family house mosque to carryout prayers for the couple.
Wushishi gave out the daughter, Halima
Babangida, to the family of the husband
and she was received on behalf of the groom
and the family by the Gombe State Governor,
Alhaji Hassan Dankwambo, after the payment of
N500, 000 and 10 cows as dowry.
Prayer for the couple was led by
Sheikh Habib Wushishi, the Chief
Imam of Wushishi in Wushishi Local
Government Area.
As the prayer was going on, more dignitaries
arived. The include Kaduna State Governor,
Ahmed El-Rufai; Minister of Interior, Lt.
Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau, Defence
Minister, Maj-Gen Mansur Dan-Ali; Osun
State Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola,
National leader of the All Progressive Congress
(APC), Senator Ahmed Bola Tinubu; Senate
President, Bukola Saraki, Senator Dino Melaye,
Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State,
the Emir of Minna, Dr. Umar Farouq
Bahago, Senator Godswill Akpabio, Governor
Abdullahi Umar Ganduje of Kano State,
Simon Lalong of Plateau State, Speaker
House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara,
and Senator Shehu Sani.
The former Head of State, General Abdulsalami
Abubarkar, and his wife, Justice Lami Abubarkar,
and Governor Abubarkar Sani Bello of Niger
State were also on hand to play host to
dignitaries from across the country
that came
to celebrate with the IBB family.
Dinning and winning for the dignitaries
after the wedding Fatiha took place in
three locations, including the IBBs residence
and at the El-Amin International School which
is few metres away from their official
residence.