Dan Suleiman (30 July 1942 – 1 February 2023) was a Nigerian Air Force officer and politician. He was a member of

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

Murtala Muhammed Murtala Ramat Muhammed (; 8 November 1938 – 13 February 1976) was a Nigerian military officer and the fourth head of state of Nigeria. He led the 1966 Nigerian counter-coup in overthrowing the military regime of Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi a ...

's supreme military council in Nigeria between July 1975 and March 1976, and was

military governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' may ...

Plateau State Plateau is a northern states of Nigeria, Nigerian state. It is located in the north-central geopolitical zone of Nigeria and includes a range of hills surrounding the Jos Plateau. Plateau State is described as "The Home of Peace and Tourism". Th ...

from March 1976 to July 1978 after it had been created from part of the old Benue Plateau State. After the return to democracy in 1999 in the

Nigerian Fourth Republic The Fourth Republic is the current republican government of Nigeria. Since 1999, it has governed the country according to the fourth republican constitution. Nigeria adopted the constitution of the Fourth Republic on 29 May 1999. Founding Foll ...

, Suleiman became chairman of the Middle Belt Forum (MBF), a socio-political group representing the people of the

Middle Belt Middle Belt (also spelt Middle-Belt) or Central Nigeria is a term used in human geography to designate a belt region stretching across central Nigeria longitudinally and forming a transition zone between Northern and Southern Nigeria. It is ...

of Nigeria.

Military career

Suleiman played a leading role during the

Nigerian Civil War The Nigerian Civil War (6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970), also known as the Biafran War, Nigeria-Biafra War, or Biafra War, was fought between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a Secession, secessionist state which had declared its independen ...

(1966–1970). He was appointed to the cabinet of General

Yakubu Gowon Yakubu Dan-Yumma "Jack" Gowon (born 19 October 1934) is a Nigerian former military officer and statesman who served as the head of state of Nigeria from 1966 to 1975. Gowon was Nigeria's leader during the Nigerian Civil War where he delivered ...

in January 1975. As Federal Commissioner for Special Duties he was instrumental in founding the

Economic Community of West African States The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS; also known as CEDEAO in French and Portuguese) is a regional political and economic union of twelve countries of West Africa. Collectively, the present and former members comprise an area ...

(ECOWAS). He assisted in the military rebellion of 29 July 1975, when Gowon was deposed, replaced by General

. Following the coup, he was named a member of the Supreme Military Council. Murtala Mohammed appointed him Commissioner for Health. Suleiman was appointed the first military governor of

in Nigeria from March 1976 to July 1978, after

Benue-Plateau State Benue-Plateau State is a former administrative division of Nigeria. It was created on 27 May 1967 from parts of the Northern Region and existed until 3 February 1976, when it was divided into two states - Benue and Plateau In geology and ...

was divided into

Benue State Benue is a State in the North Central Nigeria, North Central region of Nigeria. It is popularly referred to as part of the Middle belt. It has an estimated population of about 4,253,641 in List of Nigerian states by population, the 2006 census. ...

and Plateau State. As governor, he made the progressive proposal that anyone born in Plateau State or anyone who had lived in the state for 20 years should enjoy all the rights and privileges of a native regardless of their ethnic origin. Suleiman retired in 1980 as an

Air Commodore Air commodore (Air Cdre or Air Cmde) is an air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes ...

Political career

Suleiman was Chairman of Allied Bank of Nigeria Plc between 1984 and 1986. Suleiman resisted the dictatorship of General

Sani Abacha Sani Abacha (; (20 September 1943 – 8 June 1998) was a Nigerian military dictator and statesman who ruled Nigeria with an iron fist as military head of state from 1993 following a palace coup d'état until his death in 1998. Abacha's seiz ...

after the elections of 12 June 1993 were annulled. As a result of being one of the founders of the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), he was forced into exile. Sani Abacha died unexpectedly in June 1998. On 7 October 1998, he returned to Nigeria. Suleiman became a leader of the People's Democratic Party (PDP) in

Adamawa State Adamawa is a States of Nigeria, state in the North East (Nigeria), North-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria, bordered by Borno State, Borno to the northwest, Gombe State, Gombe to the west, and Taraba State, Taraba to the southwest while its eas ...

. The party went on to win the national elections in 1999. Suleiman also became chairman of the Middle Belt Forum. In September 2001, as chairman of the MBF he said "the middle belters are grossly marginalized and have become an endangered species on the brink of extinction and cultural annihilation". In the 2003 PDP primaries in

Delta State Delta is a States of Nigeria, state in the South South (Nigeria), South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Named after the Niger Delta—a large part of which is in the state—the state was formed from the former Bendel State, on 27 August 1 ...

, he was head of the electoral panel. He joined the board of directors of Trans Nationwide Express. As of 2006, he was Nigerian Ambassador to the

Russian Federation Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. In June 2007, he was summoned to Russia's Foreign Ministry to discuss the kidnapping of six Russian employees of RUSAL, the world's largest aluminium producer. The workers were snatched from the company's residential compound in the Niger Delta. In June 2009, President

Umaru Yar'Adua Umaru Musa Yar'Adua (; 16 August 19515 May 2010) 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 Ma ...

appointed him chairman of the Rubber Research Institute of Nigeria.

Death

Suleiman died on 1 February 2023, at the age of 80.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Suleiman, Dan 1942 births 2023 deaths Governors of Plateau State Military personnel of the Nigerian Civil War Nigerian military personnel Ambassadors of Nigeria to Russia