Profile of Aminu Masari, Ex-Governor turned TETFund boss

In this post, News360 Nigeria documents the profile of Aminu Masari, Ex-Governor of Katsina State who turned Chairman of TETFund.

Aminu Masari is an Ex-Governor of Katsina State who has been appointed as the new Chairman of the Board of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) by President Bola Tinubu.

He is a prominent figure in Nigerian politics with a remarkable journey that spans decades.

Birth

Aminu Bello Masari was born on May 29, 1950, in Masari village of Kafur Local Government Area, Katsina State.

Education

Bello Masari attended Kafur/Malumfashi Primary School before obtaining his West African Senior School Certificate at Government Secondary School, Funtua.

He later went to Assistant Works Superintendent (AWS) Training School Kano, and then Middlesex Polytechnic, London where he obtained a Post Graduate Diploma in Water Quality Control and Management in 1982.

He also attended the Administrative Staff College, Badagry.

Early Career

Masari began his career as a civil servant at the Katsina State Ministry of Works where he functioned as  Technical Assistant (Hydrology) in 1969 and rose to the position of Assistant General Manager (Operations) Katsina Water Board in 1991.

Politics

Masari’s political journey began in earnest when he served as the Commissioner for Works, Housing, and Transport in Katsina State from 1991 to 1993.

His leadership skills were further showcased when he took on the role of Speaker of the Nigerian House of Representatives from 2003 to 2007.

These positions laid the groundwork for his future ambitions and solidified his reputation as a capable leader.

On the platform of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), he was elected Speaker of the House of Representatives of Nigeria from 2003 to 2007.

He unsuccessfully ran for the office of Katsina State Governor in the 2011 election on the platform of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC).

Although he faced defeat against the People’s Democratic Party’s Ibrahim Shehu Shema, he did not let this setback deter him.

In December 2014, he emerged as the governorship candidate for the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the upcoming March 2015 elections.

His determination paid off when he was declared the winner of the Katsina State Governorship election on April 11, 2015, defeating Musa Nashuni Dikko Umaru Radda. Masari was sworn in as the Executive Governor of Katsina State on May 29, 2015.

In a bid to reshape the local government structure, Masari dissolved all local government chairmen affiliated with the ousted party, a move that sparked legal challenges from the PDP, which argued that these chairmen were democratically elected.

Masari’s resilience was evident as he successfully campaigned for a second term in the March 9, 2019 gubernatorial election. He won decisively with 1,178,864 votes against his opponent, Senator Garba Yakubu Lado of the PDP, who garnered 488,621 votes.

Personal life

Alhaji Aminu Bello Masari is a devout Muslim. He is married to three wives, Hajiya Binta was the most visible during campaigns.

His son, Kamaludeen Aminu Bello Masari, died of sickle cell anaemia, his elder brother, Shamsudeen, died in an auto crash in Katsina city.

Appointment

After successfully completing two terms as governor, Masari was named as the Chairman of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) by President Bola Tinubu in August, 2024.

His appointment by President Tinubu reflects confidence in his leadership capabilities and vision for improving Nigeria’s tertiary education sector.