By MOHAMMED TIJJANI

Alhaji Jafaru Makarfi, a respected Islamic leader and retired public servant, is dead.

Jafaru died in Kaduna at the age of 93.

Alhaji Suleman Abdulkadir, who announced the death on behalf of the family on Saturday in Kaduna, said he passed away on Saturday night.

Abdulkadir, who is also the Garkuwan Zazzau, said Makarfi was the Chairman of the Jama?atu Nasril Islam (JNI) in Kaduna State.

He was a prominent figure in the Nigerian Muslim community and had served as a Commissioner in the defunct Kaduna State.

The deceased worked with the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), from 1950, and had a distinguished career spanning over four decades.

?He was the first Northerner to hold the position of District Superintendent in the Western District of the NRC,? the statement said.

He said the funeral prayer would be held on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. at the Sultan Bello Mosque, Kaduna. (NAN)