WAYAS BURIAL: BASSEY’S FORGOTTEN SENATE INTERVENTION EMERGES AS KEY MILESTONE

How a Ninth Senate Motion Helped Sustain Pressure for Former Senate President’s Final Rest — Agba

By Undie Emmanuel Agba

ABUJA — The eventual burial of former Senate President Joseph Wayas has brought renewed attention to an earlier intervention by former Senator Gershom Bassey, whose presentation to the Ninth Senate called for urgent Federal Government and National Assembly action to bring the late statesman’s remains home from London.

Bassey, who represented Cross River South Senatorial District in the Ninth Senate, had raised the prolonged delay in the burial of Wayas on the floor of the National Assembly, warning that the situation could put both the Senate and the Federal Government in a bad light.

The presentation, which was conveyed to Bassey through Mr Paul Ishang for onward submission to the Senator, became one of the early legislative efforts to draw national attention to the circumstances surrounding Wayas’ remains and the need for a state-backed burial arrangement.

The intervention is now being recalled as part of the history leading to the eventual resolution of the controversy surrounding the burial of the former Senate President, who died in London on November 30, 2021, aged 80.

Wayas, born on May 21, 1941, served as President of the Nigerian Senate during the Second Republic from 1979 to 1983 and remains one of the most prominent political figures from Cross River State.

His prolonged stay in a London hospital morgue after his death generated concern among political leaders, particularly in Cross River State and within the National Assembly.

It was against this backdrop that Bassey called on the National Assembly and the Federal Government to urgently take over arrangements for the former Senate President’s burial.

In his presentation, Bassey recalled Wayas’ historic position as the first Nigerian Senate President to act as President of the country, serving in that capacity for 16 days while then-President Shehu Shagari was on leave.

He also highlighted Wayas’ advocacy for true federalism, his participation in the 1994/1995 National Constitutional Conference and his role as a founding member of the All People's Party (APP).

Wayas was also credited with several political and administrative contributions during his public service career, including his leadership of the Second Republic Senate and his involvement in matters affecting the development and political structure of Cross River State.

The late Senate President was further associated with the creation of seven additional local government areas in the state and efforts to protect the Obudu Cattle Ranch from a controversial transaction.

According to the account, Wayas sponsored a legal team comprising five Senior Advocates of Nigeria to challenge the transaction in court, with the case eventually resulting in the reversal of the transaction and the return of the property to its indigenous owners.

Bassey’s Legacy Intervention

The significance of Bassey’s intervention, according to the writer, lies in the fact that it was made during the Ninth Senate, when the prolonged delay in Wayas’ burial had become a matter of growing concern.

With the eventual burial of Wayas, the earlier presentation has resurfaced as part of the chronology of efforts that kept the issue before the National Assembly and the Federal Government.

The document was subsequently forwarded to the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, in the Tenth Senate.

The writer argues that Bassey’s intervention should therefore be recognised in documenting the history of Wayas’ long journey to his final resting place.

Beyond political recognition, the episode, he said, demonstrates the importance of preserving legislative records and acknowledging public officials who raise issues of national and historical significance.

For posterity, Senator Gershom Bassey’s intervention remains an important part of the documented efforts surrounding the long-delayed burial of former Senate President Joseph Wayas.