It is no longer news that the voice of the masses, Distinguished Senator Smart Adeyemi (DSSA) is bowing out of the Nigerian senate after successfully completing his third term in the hallowed chamber of the National Assembly.
For those who are privileged to have known Senator Adeyemi and also those who have closely worked with him, admire and respects him, this is indeed a loss to the senate as an institution beyond our capacity to comprehend.
This is because he represents the best and highest ideals and values that the senate is known for. For a man who rose to become known as the confidante of the ordinary masses of this country, he would be truly missed.
Senator Smart Adeyemi, many are proud to acknowledge, is responsible for many of the most important ideas and legislative programs that have improved the lives of the masses in Nigeria. The senate would indeed miss his counsel that have always influenced the Senate’s decision making process because he always reminds his colleagues that what they do, what they say and what they vote for is not only for today, it is for all time. It goes into the history books, it represents the judgement that they make and truly displays the values that they claim they ever had. Indeed, he was the conscience of the senate.
Senator Smart Adeyemi always understand that to be a senator in the true sense of the word, was a precious trust. All who heard him speak knows that his experience of learning more than ever thought possible in a very short period of time. He could explain and expound on such a range of subjects that it always took the breath of many of his listeners away. He also held high standards on what we expect from this great country of ours.
As a senator, most of his contributions to bills and motions reflected his personal convictions of the country to keep looking beyond the short term, looking beyond the horizon and thinking about the next generation. Also understanding the big problems that confronts us, having the courage to tackle what is not immediately popular, even not immediately understandable, because that is what the senate is charged to do in that deliberative body. Senator Smart Adeyemi’s views always stand out because it has always withstood the test of time.
Senator Smart Adeyemi is sometimes ahead of his time. In each of his speeches whether you agree with him or not, you are always forced to think and think hard because he normally opened our eyes to a lot of difficult issues that confronts us as a nation.
The fact of the matter is the pick of the banjo, the sweet sound of the fiddle, the beauty of the laurels in the mountains, the rush of the rapids through the valley- this things not only describes Kogi west which he represents but from an outsiders point of view who have been there many times because of Smart Adeyemi, it seems it defines a way of life because Kogi west is today more than a senatorial constituency.
Senator Smart Adeyemi is one senator that revered the senate as an institution because he has through his sterling performances elevated the senate because he brought something special about himself and the people he represents to the senate. Something in the eyes of his state that was special and represents a piece of his state (Kogi state). If there was ever a Nigerian senator that was an embodiment of his state and reflected the character and sophistication of his people, it was simply Senator Smart Adeyemi.
Senator Smart Adeyemi was the most fierce defender of not only his people but a way of life and I can truly say the most fierce defender of the masses that Kogi state has ever known in its history as a state. As he leaves the senate, Kogi state will be written in his heart. The fact is that Kogi west was not only written in his heart but he wore it in his sleeves because he took such pride in that place.
Make no mistake about this, Senator Smart Adeyemi was so devoted to his principles in the senate because even while he was in power, he always speaks truth to power by standing up always for the poor masses he thinks he truly represents. We have heard it many times but it bears repeating again, in defense of the Constitution he revered.
Senator Smart Adeyemi is one senator that can say his mind as long as there is a forum in which questions can be asked by men and women who do not stand in awe of anybody, he can speak as long as his feet will allow him to stand so that the liberties of the Nigerian people will be secured.
Many can attest to the fact that he always shows respect to whom it is due but never deference because he stood in awe of none.
Senator Smart Adeyemi’s tenure has ended but his political promise lives on. He is going away as a parliamentarian library, a keeper of the institution of the senate and it is on record that he is the institution himself. He wanted serving the good people of Kogi state as its governor but was stopped by those whose pecuniary interest and rent seeking politics deny him the opportunity to lead the state to the promise land but his time will come definitely.
Senator Smart Adeyemi, the people’s senator, we shall miss you.
– Musa Wada writes from Abuja.
Email: muswady@yahoo.com
