Yar'adua Abdulaziz Musa

Umaru Musa Yar'Adua (born 16 August 1951) was a Nigerian politician who served as the president of Nigeria from 2007 until his death in May 2010. He won the Nigerian presidential election held on 21 April 2007 and was sworn in on 29 May 2007. Previously, he served as the governor of Katsina State from 1999 to 2007 and was a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). In 2009, Yar'Adua left for Saudi Arabia to receive treatment for pericarditis and returned to Nigeria on 24 February 2010 before dying on 5 May 2010.

Early life, education, and career: Umaru Musa Yar'Adua was born in Katsina on 16 August 1951. His mother was Fatima Dada, and his father, Musa Yar'Adua, was a Federal Minister during Nigeria’s First Republic and held the chieftaincy title of Matawalle (custodian of the royal treasury) of the Katsina Emirate, a title he inherited. His paternal grandfather, Malam Umaru, also held the Matawallen Katsina title, while his paternal grandmother, Malama Binta, was a sister of Emir Muhammadu Dikko of Katsina.

Yar'Adua began his education at Rafukka Primary School in 1958, then moved to Dutsinma Boarding Primary School in 1962. He attended Government College Keffi from 1965 to 1969. In 1971, he received a Higher School Certificate from Barewa College. He studied at Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) in Zaria from 1972 to 1975, obtaining a bachelor’s degree in Education and Chemistry. He returned to ABU in 1978 to pursue a master’s degree in Analytical Chemistry.

After graduating from ABU, Yar'Adua served as a teacher at Holy Child College in Lagos from 1975 to 1976 as part of his National Youth Service Corps. He worked as a lecturer at the Katsina College of Arts, Science, and Technology from 1976 to 1979 and later at Katsina Polytechnic from 1979 to 1983 before entering the private sector.