By Lamara Garba
In every city, there are monuments not made of marble or steel but of hope and memory. In Kano, one such monument is set to rise at the heart of Bayero University, where dreams have long chased the ball across dusty fields.
Penultimate week, the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau I. Jibrin, has unveiled a vision that could transform the BUK stadium into more than a sporting arena, but into a home for dreams, a cradle of champions, and a beacon for the restless energy of Kano’s youths.
On Tuesday, 19th August 2025, his delegation led by Professor Muhammad Ibn Abdallah, Alhaji Ismail Mudashir, and Comrade Kabiru Ado Lakwaya, met with the Vice Chancellor, Professor Haruna Musa, to deliver the message. The promise was clear and bold: the BUK stadium will be upgraded to a standard worthy of national and international football matches, a facility that will rival the best in the country. This was not just about concrete, grass, and stands; it was about opportunity, engagement, and the redirection of youthful energy toward noble pursuits.
For too long, the Sani Abacha Stadium has carried the entire weight of Kano’s sporting calendar. From football matches to political rallies, it has been stretched beyond limit. Therefore, Senator Barau’s intervention is not just timely; it is visionary. It recognizes that a city as vast and youthful as Kano with its teeming population and restless energy deserves more than one stage to host its dreams.
Undoubtedly, sports is more than play. It is discipline, teamwork, sacrifice, and ambition rolled into one. Around the world, nations have used sports as a tool to address youth unemployment, crime, and drug abuse. From Rio’s favelas to Johannesburg’s townships, well-planned sporting facilities have proven to be sanctuaries where troubled youths found purpose. Nigeria, and Kano in particular, cannot afford to ignore this truth. The streets may lure the youth with quick vices, but the stadium can anchor them with lasting values.
Kano knows this story better than most. It has always been a city of footballing pride, producing talents who became household names. Ahmed Garba, fondly called Yaro Yaro, dazzled fans with his creativity. Rabi’u Baita thrilled crowds with his midfield brilliance. Bala Garba, the famous Baleriya, carried the hopes of Pillars supporters in unforgettable seasons. And of course, the global star Ahmed Musa, who captained the Super Eagles and remains Nigeria’s World Cup record goal scorer, also hails from Kano soil. These sons of the city showed the world that Kano does not only produce merchants and scholars but athletes who embody excellence.
But Kano’s gift to sports is not limited to football alone. The city has also birthed basketball legends. The great Hakeem Olajuwon, who went on to dominate the NBA and become a Hall of Famer, first bounced a ball on Nigerian soil before conquering American courts. And closer home, Dare Olumide Oyedeji, who cut his teeth with Kano Pillars Basketball Team, rose to captain Nigeria’s national team and carry the flag proudly on the global stage. Their journeys prove that Kano’s courts and fields are fertile grounds where greatness can begin.
What unites all these names — Yaro Yaro, Baita, Baleriya, Musa, Olajuwon, and Oyedeji — is that their talents flourished despite limited facilities. They rose through sheer determination and raw courage. Imagine, then, what the next generation could achieve if they were given a world-class arena to train, compete, and dream.
Perhaps, this is the heart of Senator Barau’s vision: to give Kano’s youth the tools to build futures bigger than the vices that surround them. A stadium is not just a place for matches; it is a university of character, where young men and women learn discipline, resilience, and unity. Each goal scored is a lesson in ambition, each basket made a sermon in persistence, each cheer from the stands a hymn of communal pride.
Professor Haruna Musa, the Vice Chancellor of BUK, captured this spirit when he welcomed the project with open arms. For him, it aligns with his own vision for the University — a vision where education is not only about books but about building complete citizens. The upgraded stadium, according to him, will serve not just the University but the entire Kano community, providing a safe, structured, and inspiring outlet for young people.
The story of Kano has always been one of resilience. From the bustling Kurmi market to the vibrant walls of the old city, Kano has reinvented itself across centuries. Now, with Senator Barau’s promise, the city is poised to reinvent its sporting future. A future where the boy chasing a ball in Dorayi or the girl dribbling in Gwale can look to the BUK stadium and see a pathway to greatness.
When the floodlights are switched on at the new arena, they will do more than illuminate the grass. They will light up possibilities. They will whisper to the youth: your dream is valid, your future is possible. And just as Yaro Yaro, Baita, Baleriya, Musa, Olajuwon, and Oyedeji once rose from Kano’s fields and courts to the world stage, so too will the next generation.
In the end, this is not just a project. It is a promise. A promise that the restless energy of Kano’s youth will find expression not in vices but in virtues, not in chaos but in competition, not in despair but in destiny. Senator Barau Jibrin is not merely upgrading a stadium — he is upgrading hope itself.
Lamara Garba, is the Director of Public Affairs at Bayero University, Kano
