THE END OF AN ERA, THE BEGINNING OF A MEMORY

By Abdulmajid Abubakar

I Never Knew a Gumel Without His Royal Highness Alhaji (Dr.) Ahmad Muhammad Sani II, (CON).

There is a particular kind of grief that comes when you lose someone who has been part of your life for so long that you cannot remember a time before them.

That is the grief I feel today.

When I think of my childhood, I cannot separate those memories from the presence of His Royal Highness Alhaji (Dr.) Ahmad Muhammad Sani II, (CON), the 16th Emir of Gumel. His reign was not something I watched from a distance; it was part of the world in which I grew up.

His presence was woven so deeply into our understanding of home that we hardly noticed how extraordinary it was.
The palace was there. The royal procession was there. The praise-singers were there. The Khakaki and Algaita were there. And, at the centre of it all, was Mai Martaba, Sa Maza Gudu!

Today, I understand what we were witnessing.

We were witnessing a chapter of Gumel’s history.

And now that chapter has closed.

For those of us below fifty, there was, for all practical purposes, only one Emir. His reign accompanied us from childhood into adulthood, making his death feel less like the departure of a distant traditional ruler and more like the disappearance of someone who had always been part of the landscape of our lives.

That is why writing about his death is so difficult.

I am not simply remembering an Emir.

I remember the Gumel of my childhood.

A REIGN, A LEGACY, A GENERATION

During his 46 years on the throne, children became parents, parents became grandparents, governments changed and society transformed. Yet the throne of Gumel had one familiar custodian.

As children, we saw the grandeur. As adults, we began to appreciate the character behind it, his humility, patience, composure, and commitment to peace and unity.

His leadership was steady and measured, like a deeply rooted tree offering shade and stability to those beneath it.

Looking back now, I realise that the child I was could see the Emir, but the man I became could better understand the responsibility he carried.

The child saw the horses, colours, music and royal procession.

The man sees the patience, sacrifice and duty behind them.

That difference is perhaps the most meaningful way to understand his legacy.

His most enduring memorial will not be confined to official records or honours. It will live in the people who experienced his reign, in the traditions he preserved, in the institution he guarded, and in the generations whose lives unfolded beneath his leadership.

The Death of Maimartaba changes the meaning of ordinary memories.

A procession becomes a treasured image.

A song becomes an archive.

Sallar Ghani will become more than an annual celebration, it will become a reminder of our beloved Emir who is no longer here with us.

The Khakaki will sound again.

The Algaita will sing again.

The horses will ride again.

The palace will remain.

The throne will endure.

Gumel will continue.

But the man who gave those memories their meaning is gone.

For those of us who grew up during his reign, his passing is therefore more than the loss of a monarch.

It is the loss of a father, a familiar presence we had imagined would always be there.

And perhaps that is why the grief feels so personal.

We are mourning a part of our childhood.

GOODBYE, MAI MARTABA

One day, children who never saw HRH Ahmad Muhammad Sani II will hear his name and ask who he was.

We will tell them about the 16th Emir of Gumel and his forty-six years on the throne. We will tell them about his dignity, humility, wisdom, and devotion to peace.

We will tell them something that no history book can fully convey:

He was the Emir of our childhood.

He was part of what made Gumel feel like home.

His earthly journey has ended, but his memory remains in the institution he guarded, the traditions he preserved, and the generations whose lives were shaped during his reign.

May Allah forgive his shortcomings, accept his years of service as acts of worship, reward every life touched by his leadership, illuminate his grave, and grant him Jannatul Firdaus.

May Allah grant the royal family, the people of Gumel, and the entire emirate patience and fortitude.

Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji’un.

Allah Ya jiƙan Mai Martaba Sarkin Gumel.

Allah Ya gafarta masa.

Allah Ya sa Aljannatul Firdaus ce makomarsa.

Amin.