By joshua Kogi Govt Mediates: Family Agrees To Bury Ex-Governor Ibrahim Idris In Abuja
All disputes over the burial arrangements for the former Governor of Kogi State, Alhaji Ibrahim Idris, have been resolved.
This follows the intervention and mediation by the Kogi State Government, which brought all factions of the family together.
According to information available to this medium, all parties have now agreed that the former Governor will be buried at the Gudu Cemetery, Abuja, after the Janazah prayer at the National Mosque, Abuja, in accordance with his personal wish.
The body of the late former Governor is expected to arrive at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja on Friday.
BRIEF PROFILE: LATE ALHAJI IBRAHIM IDRIS, CON (1949 – 2026)
Alhaji Ibrahim Idris, popularly known as Ibro, was a prominent businessman and politician and two-term Governor of Kogi State.
Early Life and Education:
Born in 1949 in Idah, Idah Local Government Area of Kogi State, he is Igala by tribe. He had his early primary education in Onitsha, Anambra State in 1954 and completed it in Kano in 1963. He attended King’s Commercial College, Buguma, Rivers State in 1964 and obtained a bachelor’s degree from the University of Abuja.
Business Career:
Before venturing into politics, he was a highly successful entrepreneur. He founded Ibro Trading Company with interests in construction, furniture and hospitality. In 1970, he moved to Sokoto where he established the Ibrahim Furniture Factory, reputed to be the largest furniture factory in Sokoto State at the time, and later established Ibro Hotel, which was described as the first three-star hotel in the old Sokoto State.
Political Career:
A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, he was elected Governor of Kogi State in April 2003 after defeating the incumbent, Prince Abubakar Audu, and was sworn in on May 29, 2003.
He was re-elected in 2007, but the election was nullified by the court for the wrongful exclusion of the ANPP candidate, Prince Abubakar Audu. The Court of Appeal upheld the nullification in February 2008 and ordered a fresh election.
He won the re-run election held on March 29, 2008 and returned as Governor, serving from 29 May 2003 to 6 February 2008 and from 5 April 2008 to 26 January 2012, making him one of the longest-serving governors in the history of Kogi State.
He was succeeded by his brother-in-law, Captain Idris Wada.
Key Legacies in Office:
His administration is credited with landmark projects including the Greater Lokoja Water Scheme, Lokoja International Market now Yakubu Market, Confluence Stadium, Kogi State Specialist Hospital and the Kogi State University Teaching Hospital, among others.
Family and Death:
He is survived by wives, children and grandchildren. His son, Hon. Mohammed Ibrahim Idris, who represented Ankpa, Olamaboro and Omala Federal Constituency, died in 2024. Three of his daughters famously survived the ADC Airlines Flight 53 crash in 2006.
He died on Sunday, 20th September 2026 in a hospital in the United Kingdom at the age of 77 after a brief illness.