By Soni Daniel and Damilola Faniyi
His name does not ring a bell and he is not the
type that seeks public attention. But Yusuf Umar,
38, and Chief Receptionist with Jigawa Hotels, is
now a celebrity and cynosure of all eyes because
of what he did in June this year, lifting the name
of the hotel and his family from obscurity to
limelight.
On June 27, 2014, Umar, while working in the
Jigawa three-star hotel, saw something he had
never seen in his life. He was working round the
hotel garden around 1am when he came across
an Ipad pouch that a guest, who lodged in the
hotel and left earlier that day, had forgotten as
he was leaving the lodge. Out of curiosity, the
Dutse-born hotelier picked the small bag and
opened it. What he saw shocked him and he
quickly went away with the bag to his duty post.
He did not tell anyone but his manager.
Inside the small bag were crisp $100,000 notes
neatly packed in rows that would have made the
man an instant millionaire in Nigeria. At the
current exchange rate of N170 to a dollar, the
money translates to N17 million and would have
been enough to change the social and economic
status of Umar, an orphan, who was brought up
by his uncle, Kadi Umar, who resides with him at
Garu Quarters, Emir s palace in Dutse.
Although Umar saw the money in the jacket, he
never counted it, he presented it as it was to
the manager of the hotel to keep. But it was not
long before the man, who forgot the money
discovered that he had misplaced the money and
the Ipad bag. He rang the hotel, fearing that his
worst moment had come. What would he do if
the money was not found and who was he going
to report to given the fact that there was no
evidence that he even came to the hotel with
such amount of money?
Many troubling thoughts continued to ravage his
mind and he could not sum up courage to come
back to the hotel or call the staff to inquire
about the missing money. However, the
woman, who booked the lodge for him, rang the
hotel and reported the loss of the money to the
Head Receptionist, who happened to be Umar,
whom she had known at the point of booking
the place for the man.
’’Hajia, the bag is with me’’, Umar answered
when the lady called. I don’t know exactly
how much is in the small bag but it is neatly
packed inside the bag, In a jiffy, the woman
landed at the three- star hotel and was handed
the bag containing the money by Umar. She
could not believe it was real. She almost fainted
after counting the money and realizing it was
complete. Not a single note was missing from
each of the ten packs of $10,000.
She disappeared in ecstasy and returned in a
short while clutching two envelopes, one
containing some money for Umar in appreciation
for his honesty and the other for the hotel
management for being exceptionally transparent
in dealing with its clients.
The singular act by Umar has continued to
reverberate two months after the money had
been found and returned to the owner. But Umar
himself, an Ordinary National Diploma Student at
the Jigawa State Polytechnic, who lost both
parents at a tender age and joined the JHL at
inception in 1999, is enjoying the fame and
positive publicity he is getting daily.
Like a good product, he is being sought after by
visitors to the hotel and top government
officials, who have heard about him. Some
regularly come around to shake hands with him
while others drop by to give him some gratis all
in a bid to identify with one-of-a kind Nigerian,
who has lifted the name of Jigawa State to the
international limelight.
’’I could not have taken the money because it
was not mine’’, Umar told Sunday Vanguard at
Dutse, adding that he was taught by his parents
not take what does not belong to him so as to
prosper in life.
He said he was not also tempted to disappear
with the huge sum because as far as he was
concerned, his conscience had already told him
that the money did not belong to him, and that
he should quickly present it to the owner in line
with his religious values of speaking the truth no
matter how difficult the situation may be.
According to Umar, three factors influence his
decision not to keep the money.
First, as soon as he took it, he remembered his
God that it would be an offence to take what
does not belong to him; second, he remembered
his father’s injunction not to take what does not
belong to him if he wanted to prosper in life
and; finally, the fact that it is a policy of the
hotel management not to tamper with any item
left behind by any guest. There is a tradition in
the hotel that even if a guest forgets an item or
money it should be kept for him in a strong
room that now accommodates undisclosed large
amount of cash and valuables as a
demonstration of its commitment to honesty
and integrity.
Umar said a man, who had forgotten N200,000
came back and was given it in the same currency
that he left in the hotel. The money was picked
up by a cleaner while sweeping the room and
returned to the management for upkeep until the
owner showed up two years later with evidence
of lodging there and proof that the money was
in certain denominations.
Umar’s act of honesty has already attracted the
attention of Governor Sule Lamido, who, at a
public ceremony, last week, showered praises on
him and urged him to continue to exhibit the
virtue of integrity.
As a reward, the governor presented Umar with
a motorcycle and a plaque and a certificate
personally signed by him during the 23rd
anniversary of the state. It was an honour that
excited Umar the most in his life. He never
expected to have a handshake with the governor
but the single act of honesty provided the
platform and lifted his family name beyond
Dutse.
Before the governor honoured him publicly at
the Mallam Aminu Kano Triangle on Wednesday,
Umar was blessed on Monday with a bouncing
baby boy by his wife, increasing his family
members to two. He already had a boy.
I really value the certificate and plaque given to
me by the governor more than the motorcycle
because the gesture means that I am known
within and outside Nigeria. I am really really
excited about that, Umar said.
For that reason, Umar has decided to change his
course of study so as to give the opportunity to
become a diplomat one day. I want to go into
the Foreign Affairs Service so that one day I can
work as a diplomat and make my country
proud, the father of two said. Source http://www.vanguardngr.com/2014/09/100000-couldnt-tempt-orphan-found-money-left-hotel/ 1 Like 1 Share 
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