So That Sadiq Daba Will Live
In the 70s and 80s, when there were few television stations in the country, the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) was then the leading TV station in the land. Everyone depended on the NTA for news, reports, entertainment, among others. It is particularly in entertainment that NTA really carved a niche for itself. Consequently, some soap operas shown on the station became popular nationwide. Prominent among such soaps were Village Headmaster, The Masquerade, Cockcrow at Dawn, Supple Blues, Mirror In the Sun, Ichiokwu, Winds of Destiny, After the Storm, and many others. These were all very captivating television drama series that were fashioned to mirror our country’s peculiar and diverse religious and socio-cultural setting, while also providing huge entertainment for the teeming viewers. As it is usually the case with didactic works, most of the series had numerous moral lessons that highly imparted on the society.
Though all of the soaps were quite fascinating and enthralling, one particularly found Cock Crow at Dawn quite breathtaking. A rich educational and entertainment serial that aired weekly on the NTA network, Cock Crow at Dawn was developed and financed by NTA and United Bank for Africa to promote widespread interest in farming. The idea was part of the effort to increase awareness about the need to diversify the country’s economy by returning to agriculture which used to be the mainstay of the nation’s economy. The UBA came on board the project as part of its agricultural credit scheme. The immensely talented Peter Igho wrote and developed the serial. The choice of location was Sabon Garin Tarria, a rural setting about 20 kilometres from the coal city of Jos in Plateau State.
As it is always the case with such popular soap operas, certain characters that are able to interpret their roles skillfully will eventually become the face of the drama series and as such become very famous national figures. In the case of Cock Crow at Dawn, one of such characters is Sadiq Daba who played the role of Bitrus, a rather naughty boy in the drama series. Tall, thin and amiable, Daba is a veteran television broadcaster, presenter, actor, director and producer who dazzled Nigerians with his immense talent in the late 70s through the 80s and early 90s.
Aside his role in Cock Crow at Dawn, Daba equally featured in a couple of other drama series which include ‘Rooster Crow at Dawn’, ‘Behind the Clouds’ and ‘A Place like Home’, ‘Soweto’ and ‘Moment of Truth’.
Widely travelled and educated, he studied at the St. Edwards College, Sierra Leone, NTA/TV College, and Ahmadu Bello University, and later went on training tours to Germany, U.K., etc. In contemporary time he acted Waziri, a nosy police officer, in the award winning Kunle Afolayan’s movie, October 1, which incidentally won him several individual awards across the world.
But then, as things stand right now, these are not the best of time for Daba. At over 70 years, when he should take a break from the hustle and bustle of life to enjoy the rewards of his hard work, Daba is battling for dear life. According to reports, the ace broadcaster has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, barely months after he was hospitalised for leukemia, a cancer of the blood cells with no known cure. However, with adequate medical care or a blood marrow transplant, the disease can be managed.
The financial implications of such medical treatments are always quite enormous and as such Daba could do with some help from well -meaning Nigerians. We can all celebrate this amazingly talented compatriot by rising up to help him in every way we could. We should not wait until he dies before coming out to eulogise him as it has almost become customary with us. This is his hour of need and we should demonstrate our humanness by stretching forth our hand of love, brotherliness and love towards him. Tayo Ogunbiyi, Alausa, Lagos