Tragedy Strikes Nasarawa Academia: NSUK Senior Lecturer, College of Nursing Provost Die Days Apart

Two leading figures in Nasarawa’s academic community, NSUK senior lecturer Dr. Gbolagade Kola Adegoke and College of Nursing Provost Solomon Zari, have died just days apart, leaving colleagues and students in mourning.

The academic community in Nasarawa State is in mourning following the deaths of two highly respected educators: Dr. Gbolagade Kola Adegoke, a senior lecturer at Nasarawa State University, Keffi (NSUK), and Mr. Solomon Zari, the pioneer Provost of the Nasarawa State College of Nursing Sciences (CNS), Lafia.

Dr. Adegoke, a seasoned scholar in the Department of Computer Science at NSUK, reportedly passed away at the Federal Medical Center, Keffi, after a brief illness. Conflicting accounts from colleagues suggest he died either on Friday, September 26, or in the early hours of Sunday, September 28, leaving staff and students stunned by his sudden departure.

Just as the community was reeling from this loss, news broke of Mr. Zari’s death on Sunday in Abuja. According to the Nasarawa State Ministry of Health, he died weeks after undergoing a kidney transplant.

A veteran nurse and administrator from Keffi Local Government Area, Zari was an alumnus of both the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) and Government College Keffi, graduating in 1984. In May 2023, Governor Abdullahi Sule appointed him as the first Provost of the College of Nursing Sciences, where he quickly became admired for his dedication to shaping the next generation of healthcare professionals.

Their deaths, occurring just days apart, have cast a shadow over Nasarawa’s academic and medical communities, leaving colleagues, students, and the wider public deeply saddened.

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SOURCES: ALLSCHOOL, DAILY POST