Former minister of transport and aviation in the Second Republic, Alhaji Umaru Dikko is dead. He  died in his London residence in the early hours of Tuesday.
Confirming his death to newsmen at his Kaduna residence along Coronation Crescent yesterday, the deceased’s younger brother, Alhaji Lamido Dikko said his brother’s death was the will of Allah.
He disclosed that his brother’s corpse was expected to be flown back to Nigeria for burial according to Islamic rites in Kaduna today.
Umaru Dikkko was born on December 31, 1936. He was the third son of Alhaji Abdurrahman Dikko, the Turaki Babba of Zazzau.
He is the 6th direct descendant of the famous Islamic scholar and reformer, Shehu Usman Dan Fodio, the founder of the Usumaniya Dynasty popularly known as the Sokoto Caliphate .
He started his education at Kaduna Elementary School in 1946 where, due to double promotion, he spent only two years instead of the usual four years. He proceeded to Zaria Middle School (now Alhudahuda College Zaria) where he spent only 11 months and passed the entrance examination to the famous Barewa College, where he spent six years and passed the Cambridge School Certificate Grade One in 1954.
He proceeded to the Nigerian College of Arts, Science and Technology (now ABU Zaria) with the intention of becoming an engineer. But in1958, Umaru Dikko changed his mind and left to join the BBC African Service (Hausa Section).
He spent five years working for the BBC before leaving for full time study at the university and graduated in mathematics with honours degree before returning home to Nigeria in 1965.
He took up employment with an investment company known as NNIL, which was jointly owned by the Northern Nigeria Government and Commonwealth Development Corporation.  The coup of  1966 somehow drew Alhaji Dikko into politics. He was appointed as Commissioner for Finance, Economic Planning Trade and Industry in the North Central State, comprising the present Kaduna and Katsina states.

2nd Republic transport minister, Umaru Dikko, is dead