Teacher, Principal, Administrator
Abraham Bagshaw Batubo was an educationist who made immense contributions to the development of the school system in the Niger Delta for over five decades and was best known for his indelible services in the Nigeria Baptist Convention.
Synopsis
Born on September 4, 1904, in Buguma city, Southern Nigeria (now Rivers State), Abraham Bagshaw Batubo was among the first graduates from the Niger Delta in the early 1950s. He was a quintessential high school teacher and later the principal of the prestigious Baptist High School Borikiri, Port Harcourt. He was a model in character and a staunch member of the Baptist Church until his death in 1999 at the age of 95.
His Parents and His Birth
Abraham Bagshaw Batubo, fondly called “PAPA,” was born on September 4, 1904. His father, Dabibi Bagshaw Batubo, was a successful businessman and one of the Seven Elders who brought the Batubo War Canoe to the new settlement of Buguma from the old shipping Elem Ama. His mother, Batuboba Kaladoku, was the daughter of Enwere, the wife of Chief Prince Batubo, the paramount ruler of Batubo House and son of Karibo.
Educational Life
Papa’s educational journey began in 1919 at Baptist School Buguma when Mr. C. J. Lawson was the headteacher. He had to stop school in 1923 due to the closure of the school. He then took to fishing and trading, the dominant occupations of the Kalabari people. His fishing expeditions took him to Kalabari Ololo-Toru and Kulatoru. He later assisted his elder brother, the late Gabriel B. Batubo, a trader at Isiodu Waterside, Emohua, Eastern Nigeria.
In 1926, Papa resumed his primary education at Our Saviour’s African School, Buguma. At that time, Baptist School Buguma was still closed. He passed his government standard six examination in 1929. In January 1931, Miss Young, an American Baptist missionary, took him to Baptist College and Seminary in Ogbomosho, Western Nigeria, where he was trained as a teacher.
Graduated at Fourah Bay College
He spent four years in Ogbomosho, graduating in 1935 with the Teacher’s Grade II certificate, which enabled him to be appointed Headmaster of Baptist School Buguma. In 1940, he sat for and obtained the Teacher’s Senior Certificate, followed by the London Matriculation in 1946 and the Inter-BSc Economics (London) in 1947. That same year, he was admitted to Fourah Bay College in Freetown, Sierra Leone, where he graduated in 1951. Abraham Bagshaw Batubo was one of the few early graduates from Kalabari land and, indeed, the former political Eastern Nigeria.
His Career Life
Abraham Bagshaw Batubo started working as a pupil teacher at Baptist School Buguma in 1929. He was later appointed Head Teacher of the school in 1935, a position he held until 1957.
In February 1938, he started Kalabari National College (KNC) with 17 students. At that time, the college was under the Baptist Mission. In 1941, Papa left KNC for Qua Iboe Mission and served as a senior teacher in the institute.
Principal at Baptist High School
In 1943, he left the institute for Baptist Academy Lagos, where he served as a senior teacher until 1947. He was then posted to Baptist High School Port Harcourt as a senior teacher. In 1952, he was appointed Vice Principal of the school. He was transferred to Regan Baptist Girls High School in Yaba, Lagos, in 1955. In 1956, he returned to Baptist High School Port Harcourt as Vice Principal. In 1967, he became Principal of Baptist High School, while also managing Baptist schools in Eastern Nigeria, overseeing supervisors and traveling teachers.
His Retirement
In the 1970s, the Rivers State government took over missionary schools in the state, and Abraham Bagshaw Batubo became the principal of St. John’s College, Port Harcourt, in 1971. He retired from public service in 1974 and took a contract teaching appointment at Stella Maris College, Port Harcourt. Abraham Bagshaw Batubo was the Chairman of the Board of Rivers State College of Education from 1979 to 1983, a member of the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) in 1979, and a Commissioner in charge of Rivers and Imo State in the same year.
Abraham Bagshaw Batubo’s Chieftaincy
When he was offered the Prince Batubo Chieftaincy, he had many bright prospects ahead of him in public service. He was initially reluctant to accept the offer. However, after much pressure, he sought the consent of his immediate family. There was great opposition from family members due to fears of untimely death associated with the Batubo stool.
Following the death of Chief Onu Charles Prince Batubo in 1932, subsequent incumbents died in quick succession, instilling fear in the Batubo family, and no man was willing to accept the chieftaincy. Elder Opuda Batubo, the only surviving son of Chief Prince Batubo, was aged and requested Papa to reconsider the offer. After several years of consideration, Papa finally accepted the stool. His strong faith in God was influential during his tenure. He was installed Chief Abraham Bagshaw Batubo, Chief of Prince Batubo House, in January 1975 by the late Chief Fred Princewill Amachree VIII, Amayanabo of Kalabari. God upheld his faith, and he ruled the Batubo House for 35 years.
He was a Regent
His tenure ushered in progress, peace, prosperity, and unity in the Batubo House. There was tremendous growth in the compound, with block buildings springing up everywhere. He stood for the truth, regardless of the risks to his life.
His sterling leadership qualities endeared him to the Buguma people and the Kalabari Council of Chiefs. His service to the community was recognized when he became Regent of Kalabari from 1975 to 1977.
His Religious Life
Abraham Bagshaw Batubo acknowledged Christ as his Lord and Master. He came from a Christian family that traces back to his parents, Chief Charles Onu Prince Batubo. His uncle was one of seven brothers from Dateme and Batubo houses who started what later became known as Baptist Church Buguma. These founding fathers resisted every attempt to eliminate them and thus destroy the Christian worship of the only true God. Chief Abraham Bagshaw Batubo demonstrated that strong faith even as Chief of the Batubo House. He stopped ancestral worship, display of effigies, and libations in Batubo Memorial Hall; meetings and dispute settlements began and ended with prayers.
Nigeria Baptist Convention
His faith was tested in 1975 when, as Regent, he was required by tradition to lead all chiefs in a libation to Akaso (deity); Papa refused, and many other chiefs who had embraced the Christian faith stood by him. Papa celebrated every Christmas at home, inviting all children of Batubo House for fellowship and entertainment. He also gave token gifts to the elders and offered counsel that often turned out to be beneficial. Chief Abraham Bagshaw Batubo was an ardent Baptist who never compromised his faith. He served as the recording secretary of the Nigerian Baptist Convention in 1959, Vice President of the Nigerian Baptist Convention from 1976 to 1978, and was a long-serving member of the Executive of the Nigerian Baptist Convention.
His Marital and Personal Life
On December 25, 1940, Abraham Bagshaw Batubo married the late Deaconess Evangeline Daerebo Batubo, fondly called “Abaa” (whose father was the late Jim George Amachree and mother the late Madam Leah Jim George Amachree). The marriage was blessed with one son, now Chief Dr. Tonye Bagshaw Batubo, and two daughters, Ibiso and Sokari Batubo. Their marriage was successful and served as a model for other couples. In 1990, they celebrated their Golden Jubilee anniversary.
He Escaped Death
He was known as “Papa” to many who recognized and accepted him as their father. One of these sons, an alumnus of Baptist High School and an officer in the Biafran army during the Nigerian Civil War (1967-1969), intervened when he saw prominent Rivers indigenes being executed. The officer told his colleagues that this was his father and expressed his anger at their detention of him.
When He Died?
Papa was blessed with old age and lived a fulfilled, humble Christian life. Toward the end, he was asked, “Papa, are you afraid?” His reply was, “No, Christ is with me.” His appointed time came five minutes into September 25, 1999, when he went to meet his Lord and Master. May his gentle soul rest in peace.
The greatest legacy one can pass on to one’s children and grandchildren is not money or other material things accumulated in one’s life, but rather a legacy of character and faith. —Billy Graham
Late Abraham Bagshaw Batubo was one of the best principals the Niger Delta has ever produced; he was a modest, fine gentleman and God-fearing.
Good men must die, but death cannot kill their name. —A proverb
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