Abubakar Imam

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Abubakar Imam (1911-1981) was a Nigerian writer, journalist and politician from Kagara. For most of his life, he lived in Zaria, where he was the first Hausa editor of Gaskiya Ta Fi Kwabo, the pioneer Newspaper in Northern Nigeria. He attended Katsina College and the London University's Institute of Education. He first came to repute when he submitted a play for a literary competition in 1933. The judge in the competition was Rupert East, the head of a translation committee, he liked his writing, usually accentuated by the vivid knowledge of native norms and vegetation and mixed with his literary style of wit and imaginative prose. In 1939, together with Robert East and a few others, they started the Gaskiya corporation, a publishing house, which became a successful venture and created a platform for many northern intellectuals to draw forth their voice. The exposure of many premier writers in Northern Nigeria to the political process influenced Imam to join politics. In 1952, with the formation of the Northern People's Congress, together with Umaru Agaie, and Nuhu Bamalli, they formed the major administrative nucleus of the party.