Elder statesman Maitama Sule dies at 88

A two-time minister and former Nigerian Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Yusuf Maitama Sule has died, aged 88 years. He was born in 1929 in the old city of Kano.
Sule, also known by his traditional title, Danmasanin Kano, famous for his oratory and flamboyance, died in the early hours of Monday while on admission at a hospital in Cairo, Egypt.
He was said to have been flown to the Egyptian hospital on Saturday after doctors at Kano’s Nasarawa Hospital diagnosed him of pneumonia and chest infection. His remains is expected to be flown back to the country on Tuesday and the funeral programme would take place at Kano Emir’s Palace by 4 p.m.
Sule was Minister of Mines and Power during the first republic administration of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, and was Minister For National Guidance in 1983.
In 1976, his former student, Murtala Mohammed, appointed him to head a newly established ombudsman body, Public Complaints Commission.
In the 1979 transition to civil rule, Mr. Sule vied for the presidential ticket of the National Party of Nigeria (NPN) losing to his opponent, Shehu Shagari, in a re-run.
He was appointed ambassador by then President Shagari and was posted to the United Nations.
While at the UN, he chaired the United Nations Standing Committee Against Apartheid then ravaging South Africa.