BY MUYIWA OYINLOLA
Call him a serial entrepreneur, and you will not be wrong. But, Ejuku, Kogi State-born Alhaji Al-Maruf Ibn Salimonu is also a grassroots politician.
This trailblazer, an astute businessman, who has a large footprint in agriculture, the furniture world, automobiles, as well as Oil and Gas industry, is considering replicating his impactful feats, in politics.
Born into a polygamous family, he had his primary school education in Ilorin, Kwara state, before his secondary education in Ife Olukotun, at Jamatu Nasirl Islam Secondary School, where he graduated in early 2000s.
According to him, his adventure into the business world is borne out of determination to break from poverty.
Narrating how he ventured into Agriculture (farming), he disclosed that it was borne out of his passion and determination to own a farm and become an employer of labour, instead of being a labourer on another man’s farm.
He told journalists that as young man and student in Ife Olukotun, he voluntarily engaged in farming activities.
According to him, he worked as a labourer on other people’s farms to fend for himself and make little contributions to the wellbeing and upkeep of his parents.
It was during this period that the thought came to him that he could as well own a farm and employ people to work for him.
Presently, Al-Maruf’s farms are in Kogi and Niger states, with over 200 employees. Today, plantains are cultivated and exported from the there, in collaboration with a Chinese partner.
He stated that he started the farms with about 10,000 suckers. These have grown to over 100,000 seedlings within a spate of about 10 years.
According to the CEO of Haminet Farms, he exports plantains to China through his Chinese partners and he is optimistic that the farm will be exporting over One million bunches of plantain, starting from 2029.
His vision is to be the largest producer of plantain in the North central Region of Nigeria.
In he words, “we have a plan that will ensure we produce and export over one million bunches of plantain annually, in the next 3 years”.
Speaking on the challenges facing farmers in the country, he disclosed that the major challenge facing his farm presently is theft by the locals.
He recalled a time when his farm was invaded by some unknown men, that made away with over 100 bunches of plantain.
This, he summarized, “if not for stealing by the locals, the farming and cultivation of plantains is almost risk free”.
In Haminet farms, there are two species of plantain, the Congo giants (sourced from DR Congo) and the elephant giants sourced from Ikorodu area of Lagos State. These species have a gestation period of seven months and one year, respectively.
He remarked that farming, and most especially, plantain farming, is a sustainable and profitable venture, with potential of over 100% profitability.
An astute businessman, Al Maruf has a furniture company, Haminet Furniture.
Here, various furniture products are produced and sold in large quantities.
He has just completed an expansive office in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). About 100 people earn their livelihood from this company, sited on an expansive land of about 3,000 square meters land.
Also, a notable voice in the Automobile business, Al-Maruf ventured into the business after his secondary school education.
He recalled that when he finished secondary school in
Kogi State, he headed to Kaduna, and enlisted as a moter mechanic apprentice.
While repairing vehicles, he challenges himself, querying his innate potentials: “If I can fix a client’s vehicle, why will I not try to own vehicles and start selling, to make plenty money?
This led him to acquire his first car, sold it and made money. This process turned him into an automobile dealer.
Today, his car stand in Abuja features various automobiles, ranging from Electric motorbikes, assorted and exotic cars. Over 130 staff presently earn their living in his automobile company.
His Oil & Gas business has a very interesting story behind it. He started this business as a student in University of Abuja.
He spoke about an encounter with one his his lecturers, Dr. Dennis Bara, of Business Administration department. He recalled that “during one of our lectures in the university, this lecturer told us a story about his life”.
This life story of the lecturer was a major inspiration that he needed to think about his major breakthrough as an aspiring entrepreneur.
Immediately after the lecture, Al Maruf went straight to the procurement department of the University, approached the procurement officer and offered to supply diesel (AGO) to the university authority. This singular move, earned him the sum of N10,000 (Ten Thousand Naira) profit.
“This was how I realized that I could become a merchant of Oil and Gas, without actually building a filling station”, he disclosed.
This opportunity continued to transform his life and also expanded his business. Within a year, he got a retainer ship with a top-notch government agency, to supply AGO to their branches across the country.
With these remarkable exploits in the business world, he told journalists
about his aspiration to represent his constituency in Kogi State House of Assembly, in the next Assembly.
This decision, according to him is “because of my desire to change the narratives and to impact on people, especially the less privileged.
He recalled that in his school days, he belonged to several student unions and held several leadership positions.
As time goes by, he becomes more determined to assist my people to confront and defeat poverty.
In this regard, he disclosed that, “I have been distributing education materials to schools across Yagba East Local government”, in his home state, Kogi.
Al-Maruf did not end this media engagement without
leaving a message for Nigerian youths, particularly those in Yagba East Local Government of Kogi State.
“I enjoin them to be more upright, self-dependent, shun controversies, avoid unproductive criticisms, avoid social vices, support leaders and more importantly, embrace technological changes and exploits”, he stressed.
