Isaiah Balat

Isaiah Chawai Balat (23 October 1952 – 18 February 2014) was a Nigerian politician and businessman from southern Kaduna State.

Isaiah Chawai Balat was born on 23 October 1952 in Gora (Ka̠nai), a village in Zangon Kataf local government area of Kaduna State, Nigeria.

His father was from Gora while his mother was from a village called Kamuru.

He was born into a polygamous family which was very common at the time.

Balat's mother died shortly after his birth.

He spent his formative years in relative poverty, working on his father's farm rearing cattle.

He started his early education at SIM Primary School in Gora (Kanai) in 1959 and later moved to SIM Primary School Ungwar Tabo (Afabwang), where he completed his primary education.

He subsequently went to the Commonwealth College of Commerce Jos in Plateau State between 1966 and 1970 for his secondary school education.

Isaiah Balat worked for BP plc (formerly The British Petroleum Company PLC., British Petroleum and BP Amoco PLC.) in Kano State before being transferred to their Kaduna branch in 1973.

After completing primary and post-primary education, Balat attended a sandwich programme in Marketing at the Kaduna Polytechnic between 1976 and 1978.

He was promoted to managerial level before leaving the company in 1978 to establish his own private oil and gas services company, Gora Nigeria Limited, of which he was the chairman and chief executive officer.

While in business, Balat established the CB Finance Group, a holding company with interests in oil and gas services, banking, insurance and agro-allied industries.

Balat held several high management appointments and positions in the private and public sectors.

In 1978, Isaiah Balat was the Chairman of the Nigerian People's Party (NPP) in Kaduna State where he led the coalition that ensured the election of Alhaji Abdulkadir Balarabe Musa as the first civilian governor of Kaduna State in the Second Republic of Nigeria.

After the termination of the Nigerian Second Republic, he went back to his private business.

However, with the advent of party politics during the Gen. Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida’s administration, he joined the Social Democratic Party (SDP) where he was known for his close relationship with the SDP presidential candidate, Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola (MKO).

He was a member of the Kaduna State Urban Development Board (1979 1985), a member of the Plateau State Committee on Revenue Sources (1980 to 1982) and, the pioneer Chairman of the Katsina Steel Rolling Mill from 1980 to 1983.

He was the Vice-President, Nigerian Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture(NACCIMA) from 1985 to 1987, Chairman of the British Council (Kaduna/Kano Floors) and a member of the National Council of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, from 1993 to 1996.

Balat also served as a member of the Council, Industrial Training Fund from 1987 to 1994), Chairman of the Kaduna State Distribution Agency from 1987 to 1992, Chairman of the Kaduna State Industrial and Finance Company from 1994 to 1998 and a Member of the Board of Nigerian Coal Corporation from 1991 and 1994.

Balat was also the President of the Kaduna Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture from 1987 to 1991, during which period he initiated and commenced the construction of the Kaduna International Trade Fair Complex.

For his executive education, he attended the Advanced Management Program (AMP) at Harvard Business School in Boston, in 1991.

Later, Balat undertook postgraduate courses in Petroleum Management at St. Clements University, in prospect, in addition to a certificate from the Oxford Princeton Programme (then known as the College of Petroleum and Energy Studies), Oxford, United Kingdom, between 1996 and 1998.

He served as a Non-Executive Director of Guinness Nigeria from 1996 to 1999.

Balat continued his involvement in party politics and in 1998, Balat became the Kaduna State Coordinator of the Obasanjo Campaign Organizations.

Prior to his election to the Senate, he served as the Minister of State for Works and Housing in the cabinet of President Olusegun Obasanjo from 1999 to 2000.

In June 1999, Isaiah Balat was appointed Minister of State for Works and Housing in the cabinet of President Olusegun Obasanjo.

As Minister of State for Works he discharged oversight duties and supervised projects of the Ministry which included but not limited to:

He was the Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria representing Kaduna South Senatorial District from May 2003 to May 2007 and, a member of the People's Democratic Party.

In 2003, Balat was overwhelmingly elected a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria representing Kaduna South Senatorial District of Kaduna State.

During his senatorial tenor, he was the Chairman Senate Committee on Privatization for two consecutive years during which he led the Senate and House Committees on Privatisation on a study tour on ports reform to the USA and Mexico, where far reaching ideas on Ports Privatization and Management was acquired.

Aside from his work on advancing legislation on privatisation, he also served as the Chairman, Senate Committee on Anti-corruption and where he worked to promoting bills advancing transparency in governance.

During his tenure, Balat also served as member of the Senate Appropriation and Finance Committee, Senate Committee on Defense and Senate Committee on Power and Steel.

In 2004, Balat attended the Public Utility Research Centre/ World Bank Training Program on Utility Regulation and Strategy at the University of Florida, Florida, United States.

In 2007, Balat was a frontline candidate contesting for the Gubernatorial Primary of Kaduna State under the PDP, losing to Arc. Namadi Sambo in a run-off election.

For his Governorship Campaign in 2007, Balat used the term – "Wadata" which means "Stock" in Hausa language.

The word became very popular during the campaign period and was used to signify a movement of change in the state.

In May 2010, Balat was appointed the Special Advisor to the President on Special Duties (Office of the Vice-President) where he served until his demise in 2014.

Balat was instrumental in setting up the Northern Political Summit Group - The G-20 - which held in Kaduna on 16 and 17 March 2010.

The theme and the focus of the G-20 was to evolve an agenda for social and economic transformation of the North of Nigeria.

It successfully attracted participation of a large number of the political, economic class, academia, professionals and technocrats across all sectors and parts of the country.