Colonel Tanko Zubairu was the Military Administrator of

Imo State Imo () is a States of Nigeria, state in the South East (Nigeria), South-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria, bordered to the north by Anambra State, Rivers State to the west and south, and Abia State to the east. It takes its name from the Imo R ...

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

from August 1996 until May 1999, when he handed over to the elected civilian governor Achike Udenwa. During his tenure, he had to deal with violent protests over ritual killings. In 1997 he signed warrants for execution by firing squad of six men accused of this crime. Bob Njemanze, a member of the Njemanze ruling dynasty in

Owerri Owerri ( , ) is the capital city of Imo State in Nigeria, set in the heart of Igboland. It is also the state's largest city, followed by Orlu, Nigeria, Orlu, Okigwe and Ohaji/Egbema. Owerri consists of three Local Government Areas of Nigeria, Loc ...

, Imo State, described Zubairu's tenure as that of "a soldier in a hurry to nowhere and getting to nowhere". He was said to have supported the

All Nigeria People's Party The All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) was a political party in Nigeria. The ANPP was a household party in the extreme north of Nigeria, primarily due to its mass appeal among more religious voters. It was the strongest opposition party, controllin ...

(ANPP) in the April 1999 Imo State governorship elections, but in the event the People's Democratic Party (PDP) won the election. After the hand-over, the Imo House of Assembly summoned him to give an account of his stewardship of the state. He refused on the grounds that as a military administrator he was not required to give an account to civilians. The matter dragged through the courts until 2007, when the Supreme Court said he should give evidence if requested. In September 2008 he was chairman of the National Sourcing In-Coverage Global Technocom Ltd (NSICGT), a private initiative that was issuing educational scholarships especially for Nigerian youths.

References

He was a member of the ECOMOG soldiers that came to Sierra Leone to help fight and eventually win the civil war. His major triumph was the capture of 2 gallons of petrol which were disguised as the alcohol supply for the soldiers which stopped and evaded the burning down of Congo Town in the central axis of the capital city Freetown. Living people Governors of Imo State Nigerian Army officers Year of birth missing (living people) {{Imo-politician-stub