End Of An Era As Former Super Minister, Alhaji Abubakar Alhaji, “Triple A” Dies At 87
Former Permanent Secretary, minister of Finance and ex-High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Alhaji Abubakar Alhaji, a.k.a Triple A, 87, is dead.
Former Permanent Secretary, minister of Finance and ex-High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Alhaji Abubakar Alhaji, a.k.a Triple A, 87, is dead. Triple A died on Thursday morning, July 30, 2026, in an Abuja hospital where he had been receiving treatment.
With his demise, Nigeria has lost one of its last titans of public service and a man who was seen as the voice of the North. in the civil service. A calm, cerebral statesman Triple A's pen once held the fate of the nation’s economy.
Born on November 22, 1938 into the revered Sokoto royal family, Alhaji’s journey began at Katsina Government College. He later obtained a degree in political economy at the University of Reading, in Berkshire, England, UK,
Alhaji Alhaji returned home in 1964, and walked into the Nigerian civil service and never really left
For decades, he was the quiet force behind the scenes; long-serving Permanent Secretary under several administrations, a technocrat as well as the presidents trusted when the numbers didn’t add up.
During his years at the Finance Ministry, it was Alhaji who stared down Nigeria’s crippling external debt. It was Alhaji who led the team that negotiated the Lome II agreement, fighting for better terms for a young nation finding its feet.
In 1988, he served as Minister of State for Budget and Planning. By 1990, under General Ibrahim Babangida, he rose to become Minister of Finance — although brief but defining tenure in the heat of structural adjustment and economic turbulence.
Later in the mid-90s, he represented Nigeria on a different stage, as High Commissioner to the United Kingdom..
—The Turban That Meant Everything—
But perhaps his proudest honour came in 1990.
When he was turbaned as the Sardauna of Sokoto, he stepped into shoes that had been empty since Sir Ahmadu Bello was assassinated in 1966.
It was more than a title. It was a trust. A mantle of leadership, wisdom, and restraint. And so, for 36 years, “Triple A” wore it with the same quiet grace he brought to government.
Colleagues remember him not for loud speeches, but for the way he listened. Not for grandstanding, but for getting the work done.
—Gone, But Not Forgotten—
In Sokoto, the mosques will call for prayers. In Abuja, old civil servants will tell stories of the man who could explain a budget and a proverb in the same breath
Nigeria mourns a patriot. Sokoto mourns a son. The civil service mourns its conscience.
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