The strongman of Kwara politics, Dr Abubakar Olusola Saraki's quiet passage into the great beyond hit the Nigerian nation like a thunderbolt early on Wednesday. Though at 79, the man cannot be said to be a young man, in a political era where experience counts, no one would want to lose a man of vast political experience and savvy.

While the news started doing the rounds as early as 6.00 a.m., confirmation was scanty. But a short message from a scion of the Saraki family, Laolu Saraki confirmed it thus: "The Saraki family of Ilorin Emirate announces the passing away of their father and husband, Dr Abubakar Olusola Saraki, the Waziri of Ilorin Emirate. He passed away peacefully in his Ikoyi, Lagos home at the early hours of Wednesday, the 14th of November, 2012. He was aged 79."

Reports indicated that one of the daughters of the late Senate Leader, Gbemisola Saraki, who had, herself, served two meritorious terms in the Senate and who was with him in the last moments, broke down inconsolably when the man breathed his last. His death is not just painful to the immediate family, but the man is sure to be missed by the talakawa in Kwara, who had made his house a permanent abode for succor.

The late Saraki, who was the Warizi of Ilorin, was born on May 17, 1933 in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital. But he had maintained a close affinity for Lagos since childhood as he attended Eko Boys High School before heading for the University of London and St George's Hospital Medical School, London, where he qualified as a medical doctor.

After working as a medical Officer at the General Hospital and the Creek Hospital in the former Nigerian capital, he made an early foray into the murky political waters when he contested election into the parliament as an independent candidate in Ilorin Emirate in 1964. He lost that bid but returned with a bang into the political field at the start of the Second Republic in 1979.

That Republic established Saraki as a political force not just within his party, the National Party of Nigeria (NPN) but also in the circles of the Federal Government.

He was the Leader of the Senate in that Republic and till date, he remains a reference point in the leadership of the Legislature.

Incumbent Senate Leader, Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba (SAN) is one of the ardent admirers of Saraki's leadership of the Senate and had in close quarters expressed his willingness to fashion his style after the Second Republic Senate Leader.

Ndoma-Egba confessed in a tribute that Saraki remained "a consummate party man who never deviated from the tenets of his party and was able to galvanize his colleagues to achieving the goals of the NPN in the Second Republic Senate."

Ndoma-Egba's predecessor in office, Senator Teslim Folarin was also an admirer of Saraki's style of leadership of the Senate and was believed to have forged a close alliance with Senator Gbemi Saraki while in the Senate to possibly tap some pieces of the Saraki enigma.

One of the senators who sees himself as Saraki's political son, Senator Smart Adeyemi said Saraki's political power lies in his love for the poor.

Adeyemi had said of Saraki: "As a journalist, I once asked him how to succeed as a politician and he told me I must help the poor, the women and the youth. He said that when you help the poor, they write your matter in their hearts."

The Saraki legacy in Senate leadership would continue to glow in the minds of many for generations to come. Here was a leader whose motions are always well received. He was also noted for his engaging capabilities for the opposition and the respect he commanded in the circles of government.

But his true-to type political style was what really stood him out as a politician.

Through the length of the old Kwara State, talk of Saraki as the legendary giver, a man with limitless vault of wealth and food was widespread. Every Friday, the man ensured that all visitors to his house were fed, while some even went home with brand new wrappers. It was a sort of amala politics later popularised by the man who also assumed the name strongman of Ibadan politics, the late Alhaji Lamidi Adedibu.

Any caller in Ilorin on any of the free-feeding days who chose to stand close to the talakawa would easily come out with a mysterious image of Saraki as to his wealth and kindness. He remained an idol in the face of the common man.

When the late governor of Kwara State, Mohammed Lawal was having political battles with Saraki, the common discussion at the free feeding joints was that Lawal was overreaching himself. Some would say that the governor could not even match Bukola Saraki's wealth not to talk of Baba Saraki.

It is to his credit that since the Second Republic, Saraki had sponsored the election of all elected governors in Kwara and eventually produced his son, Bukola, as governor in 2003.He was the true godfather of Kwara politics, whose influence also extended to Kogi as it was apparent in 1999 when the party he backed, the All People's Party (APP) won the governorship seats in Kwara and Kogi.

He once contested for the presidency of Nigeria during the aborted Third Republic and he returned to his stronghold afterwards. Having established his hold on his immediate vicinity, Saraki launched into the politics of the North, where he focused on the unity of the North through the establishment of the Northern Unity Forum (NUF).

As old age wore Saraki down, he was unable to foist the election of Senator Gbemi Saraki as governor of Kwara State in the 2011 election when the candidate supported by his son, Bukola, took the slot. But the elder Saraki ensured his political family was reunited before the sickness that took him away got the better of him.

There is no doubt that Senator Abubakar Olusola Saraki will remain a reference point in the running of the affairs of Nigerian legislature with the refined way he ran the show in the Second Republic. He will also be sorely missed by the poor who relied on his kind disposition for survival.