In 1912, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa was born in Bauchi, Nigeria, to Yakubu Dan Zala and Fatima Inna. Tafawa Balewa attended a Koranic school in Bauchi for his primary education before enrolling at Barewa College to earn his teaching credential. Tafawa Balewa was one of the fortunate students selected in 1944 to spend a year studying at the University of London’s Institute of Education. He returned to Nigeria after completing his education in London to work as a school inspector for the colonial government at the time.
Tafawa Balewa got involved in politics later. He was elected to the Northern House of Assembly in 1946, and in 1947, he was also elected to the Legislative Assembly.
As a functioning lawmaker, Tafawa Balewa helped to establish the Northern Nation’s Congress (NPC) with Alahji Ahmadu Bello. In 1960, when Nigeria became an independent nation, Tafawa Balewa became the Chief Minister and then Prime Minister after forming a coalition government with the NCNC, led by Nnamdi Azikiwe.
Tafawa Balewa was knighted as a Knight Commander of the order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II in January 1960. Tafawa Balewa was re-elected as Nigeria’s Prime Minister in 1964. As the first and only Prime Minister of an independent Nigeria, he held the title. He maintained solid relationships with francophone African nations while serving as Nigeria’s prime minister, and he also contributed significantly to the 1963 establishment of the Organization of African Unity (OAU).
On the other hand, on January 15, 1966, the military toppled Tafawa Balewa’s government, killing him in the process. Within a few days of his death, his body was discovered along a Lagos street. The first coup d’etat to occur in Nigeria was led by Major Kaduna Nzeogwu.
Today, Nigeria’s Five naira note features Tafawa Balewa’s portrait.
