SENATE STANDS STILL AT VALEDICTORY SESSION

The Senate on Wednesday suspended all other activities to honour Senators Kawo Dukku and Tawar Wada, who represented Gombe North and South respectively on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party before they died recently.

Wada died first on March 31, 2010 while Dukku followed suit on April 2, 2010, exactly 48 hours after. While Wada is slated for buried on Thursday (today), Dukku has since been buried according to Islamic rites.

Family members, friends and colleagues of late Senator Wada fought back tears as they filed past his remains as it laid in state at the lobby of the National Assembly on Wednesday.

His wife and their five children were dressed in white while wives of serving senators led by the Senate President's wife, Mrs. Helen Mark, guided them during the event, which lasted about two hours.

Earlier, senators took turns to eulogise the deceased who were said to have contributed immensely to lawmaking during their stay in the Senate.

Reading from a prepared speech, Senate President, David Mark, described the deaths of the two senators as painful.

He said the demise of the two men 'was even more painful especially as it came immediately after we had all worked so tirelessly to complete the first phase of the constitution review or amendment, sat for long hours to ensure the timely screening of ministerial nominees and had sleepless days and nights to pass the 2010 budget.'

He enjoined his colleagues to learn the bitter lesson which the death of the two lawmakers had taught them.

According to him, 'We mourn the death of these two great senators, patriots and nationalists. Nevertheless, in our grief, we must never allow ourselves to be overwhelmed by the tragedy which death represents.

'To be so overcome and incapacitated by our emotional plight is to open a door to a far greater tragedy. We must face the reality which death represents.'

He added, 'We must accept the inevitability of it as a predestined, inescapable end for each one of us. Moreover, despite the great and irreplaceable loss it brings to bear on us, death often opens windows of opportunities as well as doors of challenges for the living, especially to those who are thoughtful and learn from the hard lessons that go with it.

'One way or the other, some day or the other, and in some place or the other, we will be seized by death, just as we see some people succumb to death before our very eyes.'

In his remarks, Senator Jibril Aminu appealed to the National Assembly and governments at all levels to pay greater attention to arresting the menace of coronary heart disease.

According to him, 'While we accept that that was the will of God, as a trained doctor, I would like to seek your permission to talk about our health, particularly of Senator Kawu Peto, who died suddenly.

'Sudden death has become common in this country, if young people like Kawu Peto could die suddenly. People go to have bye-pass surgery and we just sit down and accept it.'