“GOD, give us men! A time like these demands
Strong minds, great hearts, true faith and ready hands;
Men whom the lust of office does not kill;
Men whom the spoils of office can not buy;
Men who possess opinions and a will;
Men who have honor; men who will not lie;
Men who can stand before a demagogue
And damn his treacherous flatteries without winking!
Tall men, sun-crowned, who live above the fog
In public duty, and in private thinking;
For while the rabble, with their thumb-worn creeds,
Their large professions and their little deeds,
Mingle in selfish strife, lo! Freedom weeps,
Wrong rules the land and waiting Justice sleeps.”
The above excerpts from Josiah Gilbert Holland a novelist and American poet described the attributes which a genuine leader must poses and in honest assessment Nigerian political climate today, very few people fall into the category of leaders with sound qualities as written above
Senator Abdulfatai Buhari, a federal lawmaker representing Oyo North Senatorial district at the upper chamber of the National Assembly is one of the few professionals in politics that has almost all the attributes mention in Gilbert’s quote and that has been the reasons why he is always referred to as the Peoples Senator
Buhari who rose from grass to grace is a man of faith, who acknowledge the grace of Almighty Allah and use his position, wealth and experience as a businessman and politician to serve God,humanity and promote sane society.
Right from his birth, God has destined him to be great and the mark of greatness has been upon him right from his birth till date, and in spite of his affluence and wealth of experience and position, Alhaji Buhari still remains a humble dude who doesn’t denigrate anybody or allow his position as one of the most influential politician in the country to overwhelm his sense of associating and serving the educated, non-literate, privilege and less privileged people in the society.
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill a former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 and 1951 to 1955 said “The price of greatness is responsibility”, Senator Buhari is a great man because he is responsible, he is accountable first to Almighty God who gave him the grace to be among the eminent that rule Nigeria and at the same time takes responsibilities of giving the people who gave him their mandate adequate and quality representation at the National Assembly.
Dr, Buhari is not only accessible but also approachable, he has a listening ear and always willing to assist people with genuine and reasonable request that will enhance their progress in life and ready to go to any length in making people happy.
As a lawmaker, his achievements are not only unprecedented but remarkable in term of legislative duties and empowering the constituents. Being one of the Senators with largest number of local government in the county, Buhari has never been found wanting in responding to the yearning of his people, his first and second empowerment are second to none in the history of Nigeria, even the sitting governor who was also a former Senator rated him far better above his predecessors and colleagues at the national Assembly .
In the last few weeks, it has been commissioning of ICT projects, block of classrooms and others across the Senatorial district including the rural areas and this is an attestation to the fact he loves the people he represent and want them to grow.
The rate at which his constituents speaks about his landmark achievement and the desire to support his political move is an attestation that Oke Ogun and Ogbomoso in Oyo North Senatorial district are not done with him yet, they are want, continuity, they want the good representation to continue, they want to enjoy more of massive empowerment programs , financial and moral supports they’ve been enjoying from Senator to continue, they want the senator to continue his press for establishment of Federal institution in Oke Ogun.
The people want a lawmaker whose achievements they can use as a benchmark for whoever is willing to come after him even in other zones, they want a man whom they will be proud to say “ He IS OUR SENATOR
Gbemiga Oluremi
