By Chioma Obinagwam
The late Sen. Ali Wakili was a trustworthy person that worked for the upliftment of the poor and would be sorely missed for his contributions to the nation’s development, according to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN.
Prof. Osinbajo stated this earlier today during a condolence visit to Bauchi state where he was received by the Governor of the state, Mohammed Abubakar, met with the Emir of Bauchi, His Royal Highness, Alhaji Rilwan Suleiman and members of the late Wakili’s family.
At the Emir’s palace, Prof. Osinbajo said, he was in the state to “condole with the people of Bauchi state on the very sad and unfortunate passing of one of the prominent sons of this state and one of the prominent chiefs in this court”.
According to him, “Senator Wakili was a personal friend, and also a loyal party member and a man who you could rely upon. He was a trustworthy person. We shared a lot of experience. We were working together with Hon. Mohammed Wudil of the House of Representatives on the Poverty Alleviation Programme of the Federal Government and in particular the Social Investment Programmes.”
Speaking on the impact of the late senator’s work on his constituents, Prof. Osinbajo said Wakili’s collaboration with Governor Abubakar ensured that Bauchi had one of the highest number of beneficiaries in the N-Power scheme of the Federal Government’s Social Investment Programme.
According to him, “As a matter of fact, Bauchi state is very prominent in the Social Investment Programmes because the governor took the trouble to engage a lot of young men when we started applications for the N-Power Programme, which is a Programme for employing graduates who were unemployed at that time.
“This is part of the work which the governor and senator Wakili did in his life time. He was very concerned about the man on the street, the common man, about issues of poverty, and we did a lot of work together to try and ensure that we are able to bring relief and succor to so many in our country who lack and who need to be uplifted.”
He added that the demise of Wakili “really was shocking and a very sad event to us. That is why I am here to say that we are very sorry about this event and also that we are very proud of the work this son of Bauchi state did.”
In his remarks, the Emir thanked the Vice President for the visit and described the demise of Sen. Wakili as not only shocking but a huge loss to the state and nation.
Alhaji Suleiman said the visit of Prof. Osinbajo is a demonstration of not just love but true friendship for the Wakili family and the people of the state.
At his residence, the Vice President said Wakili achieved so much in his lifetime and urged his family to be proud of his legacies, noting that “it doesn’t really matter how long one lives, it is the quality of service, it is what one is able to give to those around him that matters”.
He prayed God to comfort his family and that the great work that he did would continue to be celebrated, and continue to impact the people of Bauchi State and the nation.