Parliament Mourns Yar'Adua
PARLIAMENT YESTERDAY paid tribute to the late Nigerian President, Umar Musa Yar'Adua, who passed away on Wednesday, May 5.
Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Justice Joyce Bamford-Addo, expressed condolence to the Nigeria High Commission, the bereaved family of the late president and the good people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, for the demise of Umar Yar' Adua.
She described the late president as an honest and peace loving man who would forever be remembered in the annals of Nigeria, praying that God would grant him peaceful rest in His bosom.
Earlier in a statement on the Floor of the House, the Majority Leader, Cletus Apul Avoka, said the death of President Yar'Adua was not only a tragic moment for the good people of Nigeria, but a big blow to ECOWAS and the African Union (AU) in their forward march towards economic and political integration.
The Majority Leader who is also the MP for Zebilla said the late president could aptly be described as the willing-soul of African Unity and economic emancipation whilst he was in office as the President of Nigeria.
Describing the late president as a man of peace who developed various measures to ensure peace and rule of law in the much troubled Niger Delta Region of Nigeria, Hon. Avoka said indeed “Yar'Adua was a unifier and a man who believed in the collective development of his people.”
This, he observed, was manifested in his proposal of Government of National Unity in June 2007, after he was elected into office, adding, President Mills could not have done anything better than declaring three days of National Mourning in honour of the deserving late president.
“The people of Nigeria and the international community will forever remember President Yar' Adua for his unyielding effort to unite Nigeria,” he consoled.
Mr. Avoka congratulated the newly sworn-in President, GoodLuck Jonathan, and asked that God provide him the needed guidance and wisdom to keep Nigeria, ECOWAS and AU together, as his predecessor did before he was recalled by Allah.
Contributing to the statement, Minority Leader and MP for Suame, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, said Umar Yar' Adua had a humble beginning and rose through the ranks to the highest position of Nigeria, adding “he has a track record as a governor of Katsina State.”
The minority leader also noted that the late Yar' Adua always stood for simplicity and humility but ill health did not allow the late president to translate his vision to reality.
“We in Ghana shed tears with our brothers and sisters in Nigeria and pray God will strengthen his family and grant the late president mercy and peaceful rest.”
MP for Weija, Shirley Ayorkor Botchway, recalled when the late president took over the reins of office when Nigeria had a case of fraudulent elections. She said although the international observers went against the elections, Umar Yar' Adua did not waste time to set up a committee to review the electoral system that brought about electoral reform in that country.
Describing him as a bold man and embodiment of integrity, Hon. Botchway indicated that the late president did not only reform the electoral system but also did not waste time to put members of his government before court, for corruption.
She therefore hoped the new president would continue the good work of Yar' Adua to ensure credibility and confident in the ECOWAS and AU system.
MP for North Juaben North, Hackman Owusu Agyeman, observed that the late president always put the needs of the people before his and never gave up translating his ideas into actions. He asked the new President not to allow his personal interest supersede that of the people of Nigeria, but should continue to uphold democracy in that country.