Is this not strange? Is it not absurd that a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria would gather members of his own senatorial district in one place and leave many of them in tears?
But this is not hearsay. I was there. I saw it with my own korokoro eyes. I saw men and women shedding tears openly.
For God’s sake, why? What could have caused it? What could have driven Senator Abdulfatai Omotayo Buhari, representing Oyo North Senatorial District, to lure his constituents to Soun Stadium, Ogbomoso, only to ambush them with tears?
Senators are supposed to make laws, move motions, scrutinise budgets, debate national policies, perform oversight duties, attract projects and defend the interests of their constituents.
But senators are not supposed to be wicked.
They are not supposed to gather innocent people inside a stadium and make them cry.
Yet, last Thursday at Soun Stadium, Ogbomoso, Senator Abdulfatai Omotayo Buhari committed that offence.
Yes, he brought tears to the eyes of his people.
If I had known that he had planned such emotional cruelty against his constituents, perhaps I would have stayed back and saved myself the stress of travelling in this era when fuel price has become a stubborn tyrant. But how could I not be there? For over 28 years, friendship, brotherhood and public engagement have tied me to Senator Buhari. So I dared the road and went to Ogbomoso.
What I met there shocked me.
The stadium was filled to the brim — not only with human beings, but with empowerment items: vehicles, motorcycles, generators, grinding machines, sewing machines, deep freezers, tools, materials, hope, surprise and testimony.
This was not the usual political ceremony where people clap for promises and return home with handshakes. This was different. This was massive. This was practical. This was evidence.
Over 42 vehicles. Over 500 motorcycles. Over 500 generators. Over 500 grinding machines. And many other empowerment items stood boldly in the stadium like witnesses in a court of public judgment.
The kings were there. Political leaders were there. Local government stakeholders were there. Religious leaders were there. Women leaders, youths, artisans, traders, party faithful and ordinary constituents were there.
Many came expecting speeches, protocol and another routine empowerment programme.
But Senator Buhari had other plans.
As the items were issued out, local government by local government, the truth began to unfold. Some beneficiaries stood motionless. Some covered their mouths in shock. Some looked at the items before them as if they were dreaming. Some wept quietly. Some wept openly. Some lifted their hands to heaven.
By my own observation, over 50 people were overwhelmed with emotion.
But these were not tears of sorrow, pain, disappointment or political betrayal.
They were tears of joy. Tears of happiness. Tears of shock. Tears of testimony. Tears of “I never expected this.” Tears of “God has remembered me.”
A woman who received support saw not merely an item, but a new beginning. A young man, a member of the senator’s media team, who received a car, saw not just four wheels, but a miracle from heaven. An artisan who received a generator saw survival for his workshop. A beneficiary who got a grinding machine saw the foundation of a small business. Traditional rulers and others who received cars saw dignity, mobility and opportunity.
Even those who were not from Oyo North, but from other senatorial districts of Oyo State, saw the gesture as a rare deed of inclusion.
That was the cruelty of Senator Buhari.
He forced hope upon people who did not expect it. He ambushed his constituents with empowerment. He wounded them with kindness. He attacked them with opportunity. He made them cry without offending them.
Haba, Senator Buhari!
Why would you refuse to be an Abuja-only senator? Why would you not restrict yourself to grammar, protocol and empty political slogans? Why would you insist that representation must leave Senate records and enter homes, shops, farms, workshops and daily survival?
This is the offence of Senator Abdulfatai Omotayo Buhari.
And it is not as if he has been idle in legislative responsibilities. Far from it. He has been involved in lawmaking, oversight, constituency service, motions, bills, committee work and national policy engagement. He has supported education, youth empowerment, women development, community growth and infrastructural facilitation. He has attracted projects, touched lives and shown that representation is not only about speaking in Abuja, but also about remembering home.
So, no one can sincerely say he has been missing in action. No one can honestly say he has been found wanting. No one can truthfully say he has abandoned the people of Oyo North.
But last Thursday, he went beyond the routine.
He broke a record.
He staged what many have described as the biggest empowerment programme ever witnessed in the political history of Oyo State.
Not empowerment by mouth. Not empowerment by press release. Not empowerment by “your name is on the list, come back tomorrow.” Not empowerment where ten people receive items and one thousand people clap for cameras.
No.
This was empowerment with tyres, engines, machines and tools. It could be seen, touched, counted and taken home. It told the artisan, “Start again.” It told the trader, “Rise again.” It told the youth, “Work again.” It told the widow, “Hope again.” It told the community, “Representation is still alive.”
That is why Senator Abdulfatai Omotayo Buhari must be arrested by public appreciation.
Let the charge be read aloud:
That Senator Abdulfatai Omotayo Buhari, on that remarkable Thursday at Soun Stadium, Ogbomoso, intentionally caused tears to flow from the eyes of his constituents by distributing vehicles, motorcycles, generators, grinding machines and several other empowerment items.
How does he plead? Guilty.
Guilty of making politics useful. Guilty of giving representation a human face. Guilty of remembering his people. Guilty of transforming empowerment from theory to reality. Guilty of proving that a senator can make laws in Abuja and still touch lives at home.
The tears I saw at Soun Stadium were not manufactured. They were not rented. They were not arranged for television.
They were real, raw and human.
They came from the deep place where gratitude meets surprise. They came from people who came to a stadium and left with evidence. They came from people who suddenly realised that politics can still behave like compassion.
So, let it be known.
On that day in Ogbomoso, Senator Abdulfatai Omotayo Buhari committed a beautiful political offence.
He brought tears to the eyes of his voters.
He lured them to Soun Stadium and ambushed them with joy.
He made them cry, not because he failed them, but because he surprised them.
May more leaders become this wicked with compassion. May more politicians become this guilty of performance. May more representatives be arrested by the evidence of service.
For if this is the kind of cruelty that brings vehicles, motorcycles, generators, grinding machines, dignity, hope and tears of joy to the people, then let Senator Abdulfatai Omotayo Buhari continue to be cruel to Oyo North and Oyo State in general.
And let the people continue to cry — not in sorrow, but in joy, happiness and testimony.
God bless Senator Abdulfatai Omotayo Buhari.
I was there.
Sent in by Wale Ojo-Lanre Esq
