By Dr. Isa Muhammad Inuwa 

It just came and passed snappy, sneaky, shocking, yet, devastating. Everything came to pass in few days, less than a week – He was healthy and hearty Tuesday, he fell sick Wednesday and passed away Thursday night, September 4, 2025. The untimely death of Professor Hafizu Miko Yakasai came as a shocker and left many people in sheer delusion and astonishment.

If I am asked to describe late Professor Hafizu Miko I knew, I will dub him as – gentle, calm, disciplined, serious, dedicated, workaholic and no-jokes personality.

Born and bred at Yakasai Quarters Kano, late Professor Hafizu acquired both his Bachelor and Masters degree in Languages, from the Bayero University Kano. He proceeded to Poland, where got his PhD in Linguistics.

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He was a one time Dean of the defunct Faculty of Arts and Islamic Studies (FAIS) in BUK. Recently before his death, Professor Miko was appointed the pioneer Provost of the newly conceived College of Humanities, Bayero University, Kano.

His passion in the field of translation had once triggered him to the position of the President of the National Institute of Translators and Interpreters, NITI.

Although his area was basically Semantics, yet the late Professor equally spread his tentacles to Morphology, Translation and Lexicography, among other areas of the Linguistics.

Similarly, he made several and valuable publications in these areas.

Additionally, Late Miko was a nice teacher to many students of Linguistics, including my humble self. He taught me Advanced Semantics, when I was a PhD candidate in 2015. He taught with passion and always talked calmly but succinctly, with deep sense of intellectual insight.

One of his distinguishing features that marked him out was his dedication and seriousness, as he wore his seriousness on his face – Always a busy fellow, he virtually had no time for jokes or quarrel with anybody.