Where is Adolphus Wabara?

“My people, oh my people!” That statement was so popular in the twilight of the administration of the then President Olusegun Obasanjo, that apart from being on the lips of several Nigerians, it dominated discourse across the country for a long time, even after the third term bill was dead and buried.   Rising from his […]

“My people, oh my people!” That statement was so popular in the twilight of the administration of the then President Olusegun Obasanjo, that apart from being on the lips of several Nigerians, it dominated discourse across the country for a long time, even after the third term bill was dead and buried.  

Rising from his seat in the Senate to contribute to the bill seeking to give then President Obasanjo tenure elongation, Senator Adolphus Wabara, who was representing Abia South Senatorial District in the Upper Chamber, in an emotion-laden voice and dramatic manner kicked against the bill. He said: “Ordinarily, I would have considered this bill, but my people, oh my people, have asked me to vote against it.” He received cheers from his colleagues within the chamber and the commendations of not a few Nigerians.  His was one more voice that led to the death of the Third Term bill and killed Obasanjo’s ambition to foist a tenure elongation on the country. 

That singular act by Wabara, in no little way, changed the people’s perception of the man whose tenure as the Senate President came to a shattering end over an alleged corruption scandal. Many began to see him in a new light – more as a man of the masses than a corrupt lawmaker the scandal had almost reduced him to. 

Wabara’s journey to the Upper Chamber began in 1999 when he contested the senatorial seat for Abia South, on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and won. His first tenure was relatively peaceful and saw him loom large as a member of the influential clique of power brokers calling the shots at the National Assembly. Wabara was part of the caucus that ensured the emergence of Evan Enwerem as Senate President and when it was time for Enwerem to leave, he was also among the power bloc that brought in Chuba Okadigbo. After the impeachment of Okadigbo, Senator Wabara and Senator Anyim Pius Anyim were tipped to occupy the position, which eventually went to Anyim. 

But there were speculations then that if for any reason Anyim was unable to remain on the seat until the end of the legislative calendar, it would go to Wabara. He was never out of the Senate’s power equation, whether as a kingmaker or a potential beneficiary. So, even before his second coming to the Senate, he came close to the Senate President’s position a few times. 

A former aide who spoke to Daily Trust on Sunday, on condition of anonymity, noted that even before the 2003 elections, it was a known fact that if the PDP got the majority at the Senate, Wabara would be the President. This calculation, however, suffered a little setback when it was announced that he lost the election to return to the Senate to his opponent of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP). But he still made it to the Senate through a ruling of the Appeal Court, which declared him the actual winner of the Abia South senatorial election. 

That victory cleared the way for him, not only to the nation’s topmost legislative body but also to the seat of the third most powerful person in Nigeria, the Senate President.

Wabara was elected the fourth Senate President of the Fourth Republic. 

His, was, however, not a bed of roses as his tenure was marked by a lot of controversies. Senators accused Wabara of exceeding his authority by handing out various contracts without the knowledge or approval of the Senate committee responsible for the award. He was then accused of collecting $400,000 in bribe alongside six other lawmakers from Obasanjo’s minister of education, Prof Fabian Osuji, to facilitate passage of the ministry’s annual budget.

The senators moved to investigate Wabara over alleged financial misdeeds, which he denied while he expressed readiness to be probed. With the Senate investigation afoot, Wabara, in a sudden change of position, threw in the towel and stepped down from the Senate presidency. That marked the end of his place, first as a kingmaker and then a king in the Senate. But he remained as a member of the chamber until 2007.

An aide to the former number three citizen blamed his tribulations on the third term agenda that he helped scuttle. He claimed that though the issue had not been popularised at that time, it had always been in the offing, and seeing that Senator Adolphus Wabara was not ready to play ball, it was in the interest of some persons for him to vacate the seat.  

The former Senate president was later arraigned in court by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and after an extended legal battle, on June 1, 2010 Wabara’s charges were dropped. The court held that the charges were bogus and failed to disclose prima facie cases against the accused persons.

Even though a one-time Senate president, Senator Wabara was never decorated with the national honour of the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON), conferred on other senate presidents, a development, he claimed, in an interview he once granted, was due to the frosty relationship between him and former President Olusegun Obasanjo. 

After his resignation from the Senate president’s seat, Wabara took a seat close to the entrance door of the Senate chamber, from where he made valuable contributions to motions and bills. At the end of the legislative calendar, he left the Senate and did not re-contest because of an existing zoning formula in his Abia South Senatorial District that ensured that the baton was passed to another area. 

The Senate was not Wabara’s first attempt at politics, as he started at the local level. Before moving to the national stage, he was chairman of his local government council, Ukwa-East.

But since then, not much has been heard of him.  When Daily Trust on Sunday sought him out, it was gathered that the former Senate President had returned to school.  He is currently undergoing a doctorate degree programme at the Abia State University where he is also the chairman of the Governing Council.

He remains a member of the PDP and is currently the acting secretary of the party’s Board of Trustees (BOT). 

A power broker in Abia State, Wabara was among those who worked to ensure that his area, Abia South Senatorial District, produced the governor of the state in 2015. 

At the moment the former Senate President, who is 69 years old, has no plans of seeking any political office, his aide said, adding that he is contented helping to steer the activities of his party and playing the role of a statesman. 

“There were offers by past administrations to the former Senate President but he chose to remain in the background, giving guidance to his party, the PDP and politicians.” The aide added.