Ex-PDP chairman Bamanga Tukur dies at 90

Former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Bamanga Tukur, has died at the age of 90, his family announced in a statement on Saturday.

Alhaji Bamanga Mohammed Tukur died in Abuja on 12 September 2026, three days before his 91st birthday. The family said he had “returned to his Creator”. The statement, signed by his son, Hon. Awwal D. Tukur, described him as a patriarch who lived a distinguished life of service to his family, community, Adamawa State and Nigeria. It added that his wisdom, generosity and commitment to national development had touched many lives and that his legacy would endure for generations.

Details of the funeral prayer and other burial arrangements would be announced in due course, the family said. Some reports suggested the funeral prayer was expected at the palace of the Lamido of Adamawa in Yola. The family prayed that God would forgive his shortcomings, accept his good deeds and grant him Aljannatul Firdaus.

Tukur was born on 15 September 1935 in what is now Adamawa State. He rose through public administration to become general manager and chief executive of the Nigerian Ports Authority from 1975 to 1982, a period associated with port expansion and efforts to ease congestion. He later became the first African vice-president of the International Association of Ports and Harbours.

He entered electoral politics in the Second Republic and was elected governor of the old Gongola State, which later became Adamawa and Taraba. His tenure was cut short by the military coup of December 1983. In the 1990s he served as minister of industries under General Sani Abacha. He was also a presidential aspirant in the Third Republic.

In business he founded BHI Holdings, also known as the Daddo Group. He was a founder, former president and life patron of the Africa Business Roundtable and chaired the NEPAD Business Group. He held the traditional titles of Tafidan Adamawa and Wakilin Ganye, and received national honours including Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON). Togo awarded him Commander of the Order of the Mono (COM).

His most prominent party role came in March 2012, when he was elected PDP national chairman with the backing of then president Goodluck Jonathan. He held the post until January 2014, resigning amid prolonged factional disputes inside the then ruling party. He was widely regarded as one of the party’s foundation figures and later presented himself as an elder statesman.

He is survived by his wife, Hajiya Fatima Tukur, children including Hon. Awwal Tukur, and grandchildren.

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By Jude Davies