The First Bauchi Economic Summit had barely concluded when a stream of people, businessmen, diplomats, admirers of my work, found their way to me, each with a story, a handshake, or a request.

Some had known me through my works, others were encountering me for the first time. Yet among all these encounters, one stood apart, Baba Ishaya Bajama. His request was simple, yet profound: he wanted to take me to a hill to behold the beauty of Bauchi city.

I did not hesitate. The idea resonated with my spirit of exploration, and soon four other men from the summit joined in. At dawn, we were on our way to the site.

The road to the hill unfurled like a painter’s brush across a vast canvas of rocks, hills, and mountains. Each formation telling a silent tale of time. The season was kind; the rains had blessed the land with lush greenery. I found myself asking the driver to stop intermittently, unable to resist capturing the majesty of nature through my lens.

Behind me sat an ‘Oga’ from my days in Abuja two decades ago, watching as I photographed with the same fervour that has guided my life’s journey.

As we veered off the main road toward the mountain, a sight of pure serenity greeted us. The village of Birshi Gandu lay nestled in a cradle of green. The air was fresh, the soil fertile.

Corn, beans, groundnuts, potatoes, fields stretched endlessly, tended by people who may not think themselves rich, yet lived amidst nature’s wealth. Women worked cheerfully, separating rice from its shafts, their laughter carried on the wind.

At the foot of the hill stood Baba Ishaya, waiting patiently. He was a man of calm strength, his eyes reflecting the wisdom of years and the quiet pride of a life dedicated to purpose.

As soon as we alighted, my camera came alive again. Before us rose a cluster of towering rocks, layered and magnificent, reaching toward the heavens. In the distance stretched the Buli Mountains, their silhouettes softened by the morning mist.

The villagers, in their admiration, had named this place Ishaya Balama Roc, a fitting tribute to the man who had poured his soul into preserving it. I asked him, gently, why he had chosen to invest so much, his time, money, and energy, into a project that brought him no financial return. His answer was simple, yet powerful: “I enjoy doing it. I was inspired in 1991 to care for the environment, and I have not stopped since.”

He recounted how, on his way to his farm one day, he stumbled upon this magnificent rock and fell deeply in love with it. From that moment, he began acquiring the surrounding land, bit by bit, planting trees, nurturing the soil, and protecting the terrain from erosion and neglect. His goal was not ownership, but stewardship.for the land, for the generations yet to come.

We began the climb, tracing the steps he had carefully carved around the rock to ease access to the top.

Every stone seemed placed with devotion. Halfway up, I paused to look around. The view was breathtaking, waves of green rolling into the horizon.

At the summit stood a crown-shaped structure a vantage point that offered a panoramic view of Bauchi city. From there, I could see the Zaranda Hills and Buli Hills, the Federal Polytechnic, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, and the Police Training School. The city sprawled below like a living tapestry, woven in greens and golds. The higher we climbed, the cooler it became, until the breeze at the top kissed our faces with an almost spiritual calm.

Standing there, I realized this was more than a rock, it was a testament to one man’s devotion to nature. Baba Ishaya’s passion was not for wealth or recognition, but for preservation, for beauty, for the silent language of the earth. His joy, when he spoke of the hill, radiated like sunlight through leaves, a joy pure and contagious.

Dayo Adedayo

In my sixty-one years on earth, I have met many people, but few like him. Men like Baba Ishaya Bajama remind us that love for the environment is love for humanity. His rock, his mountain, his trees, they stand as symbols of what one person’s vision can achieve when guided by purpose and love.

Today in Bauchi for me, was truly a day of the rocks, yet one rock, and one man, stood out above them all.