The national elected president of the Popular Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Iorchia Ayu, lamented on Thursday the death of the former president of the Senate, in the Second Republic, Senator Joseph Wayas.
In a statement that he signed and sent to NEWSLODGE by his media office in Abuja, Ayu joined millions of Nigerians at home and abroad in remembering the role played by the late Senate Speaker, who formed the foundation of the Nigeria’s democracy today.
Dr Wayas died in an undisclosed London hospital at the age of 80 after a brief illness.
Dr. Ayu was President of the Nigerian Senate years later after the late Wayas in the ill-fated Third Republic, but he praised the deceased for being a quintessential Democrat who left bold imprints on Nigerian politics and political history.
Ayu reasoned that Wayas’ latest role stabilized democracy, added color, style and depth to his leadership in the National Assembly, which is the citadel of democracy.
The statement read: “I join millions of Nigerians from different walks of life mourning the passing of this great Nigerian statesman. He dedicated his life to the service of his country.
“He was a great man, a quintessential democrat and a prominent statesman who has left very bold traces in both Nigerian politics and political history.
According to him, after the fall of democracy in the Second Republic, Late Ways transmitted its democratic experience to the 1994 Constitutional Conference which served as a stabilizing force for the nation.
Former Senate President Joseph Wayas dies, Ayade reacts
The national elected president of the PDP mourns Senator Wayas