The late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua as a young man with his wife and son, 1977.
Yar’adua was born in the Nigerian state of Katsina. His father, Musa Yar’Adua, was Minister of Lagos during the First Republic and held the title of Chief of the Matawalle (Guardian of the Royal Treasury) of the Emirate of Katsina, a title Yar’Adua inherited.
His paternal grandfather, Malam Umaru, also held the title of Matawallen Katsina, while his paternal grandmother, Binta, was a Fulani of the Sullubawa clan, Princess of the Emirate of Katsina and sister of Emir Muhammadu Dikko.