The Taraba State House of Assembly has passed a resolution adopting the decision taken at its executive session last Thursday, mandating the acting governor of the state, Alhaji Garba Umar, to continue running the affairs of the state, pending when the substantive governor, Danbaba Suntai, is medically fit to resume office.
But the former Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Mr. Emmanuel Bello, has decried the attacks on the governor by the deputy governor’s camp, describing them as uncharitable.
Monday’s sitting, which was presided over by the Deputy Speaker of the assembly, Hon. Tanko Maikarfi, was attended by nine out of the 24 members, who unanimously adopted the resolution. The nine assembly members are said to be loyal to the deputy governor.
Before the commencement of the session, the Deputy Clerk of the assembly, Mr. Mellah Ongu, had declared that the members present had formed a quorum and could therefore commence their sitting.
The deputy speaker had informed the members that Monday’s session was highly imperative in order to adopt the resolution taken at the executive session last Thursday, after the meeting of the assembly leadership with Suntai last Wednesday.
Hon. Aminu Umar, representing Jalingo II Constituency, who read a copy of the resolution to the members present, moved a motion for its adoption and was seconded by Hon. Mohammed Gayam, representing Gashaka Constituency.
After the motion, the deputy speaker called for a voice vote for the adoption of the resolution and all the members present unanimously voted for its adoption, just as he directed the clerk to communicate the resolution to the acting governor.
In passing the resolution at its executive session last Thursday, the assembly stated that after meeting with Suntai the day before, it was convinced that he could not have authored the letter he purportedly transmitted to the assembly on August 26 in which he notified the assembly of his readiness to resume his official duties after being out of the state for 10 months.
According to the resolution, “The leadership of the Taraba State House of Assembly made several efforts to see the governor since his arrival, but till yesterday, August 28, 2013 that they were not allowed access to the ailing governor and their visit revealed that he spoke in the manner that brought more doubt to his authorship of the letter purportedly transmitted to the Speaker of the state House of Assembly.
"Be that as it may, we the undersigned members of the state House of Assembly have unanimously resolved in our meeting that the deputy governor upon whom power was earlier transmitted to by the state House of Assembly still remains the acting Governor of Taraba State and will continue to act in that regard until such a time the governor is capable of administering the state.”
The return to work of the SSG is a big blow to Suntai’s loyalists led by his wife, Hauwa and Senator Emmanuel Bwatcha.
In a related development, Suntai remains marooned at the governor’s lodge with the two medical personnel that accompanied him from the United States, as well as his younger brother, Babangida.
However, the former Commissioner for Information has described the current attacks on Suntai by the camp of his deputy as uncharitable.
In a statement issued via SMS, Bello said: “The latest ploy is to continuously draw a parallel between the late President Umaru Yar’Adua and Suntai. The comparison is wrong, wicked and in bad taste.
“First, all faiths forbid the art of comparing the living with the dead. Again, Suntai had an accident. He is not suffering from a debilitating terminal illness. He is recuperating and getting stronger by the day.”
Bello said Suntai was not smuggled into Nigeria in the dead of the night, adding: “He came back by day, waving at his supporters. Suntai has since transmitted a letter, announcing his resumption to the House of Assembly as provided in the constitution. He has also addressed the state in a televised broadcast.”
However, Bello failed to give reasons why the governor has remained holed up in the Government House, after a flurry of activities when he returned to the country, and whether there had been a deterioration of his health.
Meanwhile, in a bid to find a lasting solution to the festering political crisis in Taraba State, President Goodluck Jonathan has up a committee to wade into the crisis.
In the same vein, the leadership of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will also send a delegation to the state with a view to nipping the crisis in the bud.
The presidential and the PDP committees are expected to arrive Jalingo, the state capital today and are expected to meet all the parties to the crisis, particularly the loyalists of ailing governor and his deputy.
The Chief Press Secretary (CPS) to the acting governor, Mr. Kefas Sule, who disclosed this to journalists, further disclosed that the state lawmakers in the House of Representatives and Senate would be in the state ahead of the presidential committee and the party’s reconciliation committees to map out the way forward on the crisis that had engulfed the state.
Sule also debunked a report published in a national daily purporting that bankers to the state government had stopped honouring cheques issued by the state government under the leadership of Umar.
"It is not true. When I read in one of the national dailies that banks were not honouring transactions originating from the acting governor, I approached appropriate authorities and they said it was a lie.
"After all, the governor does not sign cheques, hope you know that?
"The governor of a state only approves memos thereafter the Accountant General through the Commissioner for Finance issues cheques," he said.
Sule further reaffirmed that his principal was in control of the affairs of the state, stressing that the assembly was yet to inform the acting governor that Suntai had officially resumed duty.
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