Etsu Nupe: My journey in the game of golf
The Etsu Nupe, Yahaya Abubakar, was a onetime Brigadier-General in command of the Nigerian Army Armoury in Maiduguri. He was indeed introduced to golf by a wealthy Maiduguri enterpreneur, Alhaji Ndima. In 1988, the Etsu moved to Indonesia where he totally imbibed the spirit of the game. In 1994, he was moved to Maiduguri to be in charge of the Army’s Armoury. It was here he moved mountains any serious 14-handicapper could move. The Etsu plays off 14 handicap at the time.
But the story is just beginning: On arriving Maiduguri for a fresh posting, the Etsu, unlike those who came before him, shunned accommodation in the city and preferred to reside at the barracks which is far out of town and just few kilometres to Chad. Like he put it: “Anywhere I was posted, I wanted to be with my people. I wanted to stay with my boys”.
For the new commander, it was a common day-to-day life. Anytime the Etsu woke from his residence at the Barracks, he would move out of the house just to catch a glimpse of the narrow road leading to the nation of Chad. Before viewing the road, he would be confronted with a vast, open land ahead of him and if he stretched his head backward, a view of another vast land would show. A thought soon jumped into his mind. Why allow the vast land to lie in waste? Why not do something practical about the huge land belonging to the Army. He thought of a golf course and he moved to build one.
“I had money with me and I was determined to construct a course on that land”, the Etsu said, flashing little smile that portrayed the past sweet years. “The first thing I did was to call on Jos based professional golfer, Sampson Lawal, to help in the construction of the course. We did well. The place was getting in shape but I had to leave. Before I left, three holes were in shape and it was thrilling while I played in those three holes. Really wonderful. I wish I stayed longer. I could have accomplished the construction of the whole 18 holes. But then, those behind would continue from where I stopped for the whole thing belongs to the Army... and Army personnel would recreate there”.
Lofty idea, Lofty dream. The sad thing is that the moment the Etsu left Maiduguri, everything about the course went kaput, totally dead. It was indeed a shock when I visited Maiduguri some years back so I could witness the rebirth of a course that has been abandoned for some 20 years now. The two men behind the resurrection of this course are the Borno State SSG, Amb. Ahmed Baba Jidda and ACP John Abang who was in charge of Police operations in Borno State. The dream of the course rebirth was dear to their heart. They knew it that the Etsu would offer his blessings. So ACP Abang handed me the private number of the Etsu’s cellophone. He wanted me to have a chat with him.
I indeed called the line and someone picked. I never believed it could be his Majesty so I asked if I could speak with the Etsu. “Speaking”, a cool voice bellowed from the other end of the line. My mouth dropped an inch before I picked it. I did anyway and asked if he could answer few questions on the abandoned Maiduguri course. The Etsu said ‘he would be delighted to answer my questions, but not on phone. He then invited me to his palace in Bida.
A friend who knows every bit of Niger State drove me into Bida, some 80 kilometres from Minna on a Saturday morning that showed signs of rains. When I arrived the Palace, I never believed could be so massive.
The moment I entered into the Etsu inner Chamber, I knew we could talk for hours. “So, how is the Maiduguri course doing?”, the Etsu asked. “Oh, they shouldn’t have abandoned it. Well, I know Abang and I believe the course could be resuscitated. They should do what I planned to do. At the time I was constructing the course, I had it in mind to give out holes to prominent people in the state. It’s like if a hole is named after you, then you will have to cater for the maintenance of that particular hole. If you do this, everything will be okay”.
The time was ticking towards 4pm. The Etsu hinted he would soon move to the already packed Palace mosque to offer his prayers. I thought we would round up so I could be on my way. But the Etsu thought differently. He asked me to wait till after the prayers. After the prayers, the Etsu handed me the master plan of his royal course in Bida. The course measured well over 7000 yards and it was built in less than a year.
“All the land spaces I acquired to build the course I paid for”, the Etsu said. “This is despite the fact that I am the Emir”.
All the same, years after this posh course was constructed, not much has been heard from Bida in terms of golf activities. So what is happening to the Bida course? it