The venue was one of the Banquet Halls in the Aso Rock Presidential Villa. Date was November 25 and the event was the dinner held by President Muhammadu Buhari for Senators, the first since the National Assembly was inaugurated last June.

Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki had just surprised every one, including the host, President Muhammadu Buhari. Without looking at any paper, he introduced all his colleagues, about a hundred of them, by names and constituency. He also did not miss any. He got a standing ovation from his colleagues, in addition to a presidential handshake. The fellow sitting next to me remarked: "this man is brilliant". I did not know when I proudly told him that "you don't read medicine and graduate from the University of London, if you are not cerebral".

I do not know anybody who went to school at the time I did in the 80s who will not agree with me that only the most extremely brilliant ones made it to the College of Medicine and graduated to become a medical doctor. Many who make comments about Dr. Saraki today simply talk about him as a politician, perhaps one with a privileged background. However, analyzing the man in the context of politics and his family does not do justice to the topic.

It is true that Saraki as a politician has a unique place in Nigerian political history. He is the only Senator today whose father was elected Senator twice (the old man was the Senate Leader between 1979 and 1983) and his immediate younger sister had also served as Senator for two terms while he himself is on his second term as a Senator. Three Senators from a nuclear family! That is a rarity in a Nigeria still bogged down by zoning formula instead of competence.

However, the incumbent President of the Nigerian Senate is a man who has earned his stripes. Those who know him closely can testify that he is a hard worker, very diligent on any assignment he is handling and expects same from those who work with him. A man who gives attention to details. He is also a man who believes in strategizing before handling any task. He often asks: 'what is your plan for accomplishing this task?. He is not a man who underrates his opponent. He believes in thorough preparation before any engagement.

From the quality and caliber of his staff, the time devoted to National Assembly tasks as Senate President, the initiatives that have emerged in the six months that he has been Senate President and Chairman of National Assembly and the global networking that he has done on behalf of the Nigerian state and the institution that he leads, it is clear that he had prepared for the job. Also, it is obvious that his colleagues have not made any mistake in their staunch support for him.

He is always saying to us, his aides, that it is easy to be in an office and just be bogged down by the routines without making any significant difference until the tenure will expire. Only a man who cares about his own place in history reasons like that. So, that is why he is vigorously pursuing the idea of the eighth Senate having an Agenda which will be its compass and guides it till 2019. He has also ensured that there is an Adhoc committee on compliance which is to monitor the 65 committees set up by the Senate. This Adhoc committee is to ensure that members of the standing ones deliver on their mandate while also keeping to the rules of the Senate in their engagement with Ministries, Department and Agencies as well as other external bodies or individuals.

efinitely, he is determined to be one of the most successful Senate Presidents ever and this guides most of his activities on the job. First, a journalist who has been covering the Senate in the last 12 years described him as the most hard working and energetic Senate President he has seen. Of course, he is also the youngest and one of the few who can be called home-grown Senate President.

He assumed office and has been sustained solely by the sheer force of support from his colleague-senators. The journalist said past Senate Presidents would never come to the National Assembly complex on days that are not meant for plenary sitting. That is Monday and Friday. Like when he was a banker or as Governor of Kwara State, Monday to Friday are work days in the office, except he is out of town, mostly on official duties. Even when out of town, he runs the office from wherever he is as he dishes out assignments to aides and expect them to report to him from time to time.

n Mondays, since there is no plenary sitting of the Senate, he schedules courtesy calls and stakeholder engagement appointments as well as other crucial meetings for that first working day of the week. Two of the meetings are worthy of mention here. The first is the senior staff meeting in which he meets his key aides to plan the time table for the week. Here, his schedule - legislative, social and political- are pre-arranged. Here too, the shape of the issues, agenda, proposed bills, motions and other plan for the Senate in the new week will first be deliberated upon and reviewed. The outcome of this meeting helps to set the tone for the second crucial meeting later in the residence. That is with the Senate leadership. The first meeting also allowed the man to review and shape the plan of each of the units in his office for the week.

The senior staff meeting, for example, is such a serious session in which the Economic Adviser addresses the meeting on key economic issues for the week. The Legal Adviser is called upon to give the position of the law on raging issues and yours truly speak on issues trending in the media and what narrative is prevalent.

The second meeting enables the ten-man Senate leadership to agree on a time table for the week and the strategy for achieving smooth and productive sessions. In addition to this meeting, the leadership also meet before the commencement of every plenary session to finalize the contents of the order paper. What these meetings have done is to carry the leadership along in the happenings on the floor while also ensuring the decisions percolate to other members who belong to both APC and PDP. They also properly structure the schedule and parliamentary programme of the institution.

This methodical and strategic leadership is making this Eighth Senate system-driven, all-inclusive and a more cohesive chamber. A formal process is emerging. That perhaps is why its President continues to grow in popularity, respect and acceptability among his colleagues.

To say that ABS, as he is fondly called by his close friends, is an elite is not far from the truth. What may not be correct is to view him as the 'butter, pampered, rich kid'. The man is as 'grassroot' as they can come in Nigerian politics. It is surprising how he has managed to blend so well with ordinary people, even those in the remotest part of his state, for example. He has warmed his way into the hearts of the people of Kwara State with ease. He feels so much at home with them. Like his late father, Senator Olusola Saraki, popularly called 'Oloye' among the general populace in Kwara State, the Senate President is also a folklore hero among his people. Each time he visits Ilorin, the excitement, undiluted loyalty and passion with which the people welcome him and gather round him reminds me of how the same crowd usually hailed his father. Now in addition to the chants of 'Oloye', the new slogan is 'Sai Leader, Sai Bukky, Oloye!'.

He is still one of the few politicians who will attract an extremely huge, passionate and supportive crowd without any prior plan or mobilization at any time of the day. Also, like the late Wazirin Ilorin, Saraki who is Turakin Ilorin, is an energetic, enigmatic campaigner who goes from hamlet to hamlet, village to village and ward to ward during electioneering campaigns. Beyond election period, he goes out to the furthest part of the State to keep in touch with supporters and attend to social events. It is a wonderful transformation for the medical doctor-turned banker as he is at home among his people. He probably learnt good lessons from his old man. A fruit, they say, does not fall too far from the tree that produced it.

e is also a pan Nigerian operator. Saraki is at home with all Nigerians and in all parts of the country. No wonder he has a good relationship with all his other 108 colleagues. Such an attribute is a benefit from his family and professional background. Check out his staff list, it is as diversified as Nigeria is.

He is at home discussing any serious topic, once it is about governance. Apart from his brilliant mind, the eight years experience as a Governor, particularly as chairman of Nigerian Governors' Forum ( NGF) must have also shaped his versatility. This man also has a high sense of humour. This attribute helps him to remain calm and unfazed even during critical and difficult periods.

Senator Saraki is always preaching the gospel of a man remaining focused on his goals and not allowing detractors dictate what one does and how one proceeds on his journey. A very confident man, when people were putting pressure on him to declare war on some leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) who have been sponsoring media propaganda against him, he will always say to me ' Please, don't let us start all that. It can only distract us. If one is not careful, that is what I will use the entire four years to do. Is that what i want people to remember me for? We have our legislative agenda to pursue. We must remain focused and not allow some people who have no responsibility to determine our agenda for us.'

Some critics have refused to admit that one of the reasons they ceaselessly fight, undermine and plot against him is because of their fear that he has a consistent history of making a success out of any assignment given to him. These opposition are aware of his record as a Presidential aide in which he was one of the authors of the Fiscal Responsibility Act. They know that Kwara State under him became better and able to compete and even surpass many states that were created at the same time. They are conscious of his administration's achievements in infrastructural development, health, agriculture, trade and commerce when he was governor and how he made the hitherto obscure NGF became a major governance institution that the Presidency now struggles to control. They have seen that despite their consistent attacks aimed at distracting him, he has continued to lead the Senate into taking giant strides and making positive decisions that are unprecedented in the history of the law making institution.

There is no doubt that with a Legislative Agenda, a proposed e-parliament, a legislative chamber that continues to engage stakeholders in various sectors, a law making body that may record the passage of the highest number of the most relevant laws that will help revive the economy, a Senate whose leadership continues to complement the executive in pleading Nigeria's case in relevant national and international fora and a Senate whose motions have led to the resolution of issues that are of interest to the ordinary people, Saraki will continue to remain popular with both his supporters and adversaries.

That is why as he celebrates his 53rd anniversary today, I pray to God to give him the wisdom, energy, resources and platform to continue to build bridges of unity, development, prosperity, peace and understanding across Nigeria, in particular, and the entire world. Happy birthday to the 13th President of the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Olaniyonu is Special Adviser to the Senate President on Media and Publicity.