Dr. Joseph Wayas was the Second Republic Senate President. He was the first Senate President to return unspent fund to the treasury. In this interview, the former number three citizen laments that he lives on charity.
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Excerpts:
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How have you fared after serving as number
three citizen?
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I'm very proud to be a Nigerian. It is God's wish that I will be a Nigerian; we are a nation that is still struggling to put things in perspective and we should not look at me alone but also other Nigerians in general. A lot of things need to be put right, they include the faring you just referred to. Obviously, after serving the nation and you get to my age and you are referred to as retired, you should be able to benefit from your service to your fatherland. But it is not the case, though it is not right to conclude that everything is not done rightly. So, as we march forward, we will continue to amend and do things which we should have done. Don't forget we are only about 52 years old as a nation. When you compare that with countries that are a hundred years old, it can't be the same; that is my hope.
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As an elder statesman and one time number three citizen, how has the country cared for you and some others that have served this country?
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Well, I can only speak for myself, but, like I said, it's a long walk and I believe we will gradually get there. But to expect that everything will be very perfect and problems solved completely within this time frame, I think it is not fair to blame the country or blame anybody. I believe Africa will get there.
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How often do your benefits come?
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I will tell you the true position provided you don't exploit it and the truth is that things have been extremely very hard. I am a strong believer in God and He will amend the situation; fare, that is the appropriate word to use, especially when you read in the papers about people talking about other peoples retirement, you will start asking yourself, what is wrong with my case? What you expect to hear from me is that, no, it doesn't matter, it is okay, but the truth is that it is not okay, it is very hard. So, I expect or hope that this area should be looked into and all corrections made. To me, if people like us live in a very terrible condition, it is not good for Nigeria; people in other countries will see it as an invitation for corruption for officials while still in service, but any money or wealth you acquire wrongly will disappear wrongly.