Tribute to Suleiman Baffa

Michael Okonkwo

My family and I were pained to learn about the passing away of Alhaji Suleiman Suleiman Baffa, an erstwhile Managing Director and Chief executive of Union Bank, and by extension my boss, even though I did not report directly to him, for I was of a much lower status at the time. 

I nonetheless had a memorable encounter, with the soft spoken, gentleman banker, an administrator and a leader, who endeared himself to me, soon after he joined the Bank.

Yes, our paths crossed in Union Bank but his reputation preceded him and I was much familiar with his personality and qualities long before we met. And when we did, my experience of him matched in every respect, the picture of him as was in my sub-conscious, of a man who was as straight as a die in his dealings, constant in character as the northern star, and with rare administrative prowess, that spoke of the best of our colonial past, when the hallmark of seasoned administrators was fairness, merit and equity!

Alhaji Baffa had palpable confidence, and power, as he straddled a colossus of a Bank, in assets, Staff numbers and branch network, which at his time extended to virtually all the major towns and villages in the country.  His power and social network, based on his antecedents from prior appointments, and then conjoined with the privileges of his office as MD/CEO of Union Bank, was quite intimidating!

Yet Alhaji Baffa was not in any way overwhelmed by power but he tamed power and never forgot its purpose in management, as my encounter with him best illustrates.

I had, as the Union Bank’s Data processing manager at the time, taken a lone minority position in a technical committee chaired by him, while all other committee members gravitated towards his position on a technical issue, where ordinarily I should be more informed. I was however not daunted by that development, and even insisted that my minority position should be remarked in the minutes by the secretary. I least expected that the remark on the committee resolution, would result in an invitation to me by the Board when the paper came before it for final approval.

However, it did, but I couldn’t, as it were, wash our dirty linen before outsiders, as I considered the board to be, in relation to the core management of the Bank, and when asked to expound on my position, I told the board that in hindsight the MD was right, because his view was holistic, while mine focused on a much narrower aspect of the Bank’s business.

The following day Alhaji Baffa invited me to his office for a private meeting. He met me with a gentle smile and a reassuring look. These good gestures helped calm my unsteady nerves, and restored my confidence, thus dispelling my fears of an anticipated sack which was a rumour among colleagues for my having the temerity to oppose the Chief executive, and a powerful figure at that!

However, to my surprise, Alhaji Baffa told me that I should erase all fears from what had transpired, as that incident at the committee had on the contrary, brought us together as friends! He even ended our meeting with an open invitation to visit his home and farm in Kano. 

That meeting heightened my respect for Alhaji Baffa and made me to develop a special liking for him, but above all, the meeting taught me a lasting lesson on power and its use in management, among others! And surprisingly, until the end of Alhaji Baffa’s tenure, he did not cause to be implemented or reference that project again, for reasons I did not know but can still only guess that he must have rechecked his facts or intuitively knew that the committee members were merely pandering to him as the MD, while I had spoken from the heart! Whatever the reason was, only leaders, not bosses and men of honour who are not consumed by ego or overwhelmed by power, could muster the courage to retract their decisions, given the circumstance under which the committee decision was made.  And Alhaji Baffa was one of the very few of such men in this country. What a fine gentleman and leader he was! 

As Baffa left his foot prints on the corporate sands of time, so has his demise created voids in several quarters – among his fans and friends to which I belong, his communities and his family, all of whom are in emotional trauma as a result.

We therefore approach the throne of grace, of the Almighty Allah, with twin baskets of – Thanks and Prayers.  

We thank Him for the life of Alhaji Baffa, His gift to us for a time period, and also for the good times we shared with him.

We pray You, O Merciful Almighty Allah, to grant alhaji Baffa Al-jannah. 

We acknowledge that None but only You, O Allah, can fill the many voids created by his demise, and heal our pains. 

We therefore seek your consolation, particularly for his family at this trying time, and your care and protection for them, in Your Mighty Name, Amin.

Adieu! Adieu!!Adieu!!! Our dear S.S. Baffa.