Funeral ceremonies and prayers were held in absentia (Salatul Ga’ib) on Saturday in Kano for the late business mogul, Alhaji Aminu Dantata. Dantata died on Friday in Dubai.
The prayers were held for Dantata, who was aged 94, at the Umar Bin Khattab Mosque in the Kano metropolis.
Sheikh Ibrahim Khalil, Chairman of the Kano State Council of Ulamas, led the prayers, attended by thousands of sympathisers, including prominent personalities like the Deputy President of the Senate, Sen. Barau Jibrin.
Khalil, who spoke after the event, said Salatul Ga’ib is observed for Muslims who die outside their home country or in places where funeral rites cannot be performed.
Dantata, a leading figure in Nigeria’s private sector, expanded his family’s legacy into a conglomerate with interests in construction, manufacturing, finance, agriculture, and oil and gas.
He was also renowned for his philanthropic works, having funded schools, hospitals, mosques, and welfare centres across Northern Nigeria through his foundation and personal initiatives.
He is “buried in Madina, Saudi Arabia, in accordance with family arrangements.”
Dele Fashomi, seasoned journalist and communication teacher, is a holder of Master of Arts degree in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan in 1992/93.
Earlier, he had bagged a Bachelor degree from the same university in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos, in 1990, for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism.
He had done many courses in communication, including the EU-BBC Editing Course in 2002.
Mr. Fashomi combines effectively the practice, research and teaching of communication. And to date, he has published two academic works in communication: Issues in Communication Technology and Policy (2010) and Economic and Social Issues in Advertising and PR (2013).
He had his first break in the Nigerian media in Concord Newspapers in 1990 and today, he has over two and half decades experience earned in several newspapers.
He has been part of many start-ups, such as The Republic (1987), The Comet (1999), The Anchor 2001 – 2002; Sun Newspapers (2003); Westerner newsmagazine (2005 – 2010) as Editor; National Life (2011) as Sunday Editor, and Newswatch Newspapers (2012- 2016) as Daily Editor.
Dele Fashomi is now the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Newstide247.com newspaper online, which he started in July 2015. He is also into biography writing, with many books in his trail, some of which he wrote alone and one he co- authored with his mentor, Mr Dare Babarinsa, entitled: Olabiyi Durojaiye – DARE TO BE DiFFERENT. He also guided and collaborated with Pa Olatunji Odusanya in writing his autobiography – AGAINST ALL ODDS. There are many other books in the works under his pen.
