Update: How Taraba lawmakers declared Governor Suntai unfit to rule

The Taraba State House of Assembly on
Thursday reaffirmed Garba Umar as the
Acting Governor of the State and advised
ailing Gov. Danbaba Suntai to proceed for
further treatment.
In a statement signed by 16 out the 24
members of the House of Assembly, the
legislators said the decision was taken in
the interest of the state.
“The leadership of the assembly made
several efforts to see the governor since
his arrival, but up till Wednesday they
were not allowed access to him.
“The ailing governor spoke in a manner
that brought more doubt to his letter
purportedly transmitted to the speaker,”
the lawmakers, who met Mr. Suntai on
Wednesday evening, said.
“In view of the above, we, the undersigned
members of the state assembly
unanimously resolved at our meeting that
the Deputy Governor, upon whom power
was earlier transmitted to by the state
Assembly, still remain the acting
Governor of Taraba.
“He will continue to act in that regards
until such a time the governor is capable
of administering the state,” the statement
said.
The lawmakers, who signed the
statement, include the Speaker, Haruna
Tsokwa; Deputy Speaker, Tanko Makarfi;
Chief Whip, Mohammed Gwampo; and
Deputy Majority Leader, Josiah Kente.
Others are Deputy Chief Whip, Mohammed
Umar; the Minority Leader, Ibrahim Imam;
and the Minority Whip, Yahya
AbdulRahman.
Also in the list are Iratsi Daki, Rashida
Abdullahi, Aminu Umar, Emmanuel Dame,
John Bonzena, Abubakar Jugulde,
Hamman Adamu Abdullahi, Abdulkarim
Mohammed and Edward Baraya.
Mr. Suntai was flown out of the country
for urgent medical treatment following
injuries sustained in a plane crash in
October 2012.
The governor, who returned to Jalingo on
August 24, wrote to the House of
Assembly informing the lawmakers of his
return and readiness to resume office. The
assembly, however, asked him to appear
before it to enable it decide on his request
and confirm if he indeed wrote the letter.
Instead of accepting the invitation, an
aide of the governor announced that Mr.
Suntai had dissolved the state executive
council, and appointed a new Secretary to
the State Government, SSG, and new
Chief of Staff, Government House.
Silvanus Giwa, the Senior Special
Assistant to the Governor on Media and
Publicity, announced the dissolution at a
news conference on Wednesday.
Mr. Giwa, who claimed he spoke on the
orders of Mr. Suntai, named the outgoing
Commissioner for Justice, Timothy
Kataps, as the new SSG and Aminu Jika
as Chief of Staff.
The lawmakers statement of Thursday is
believed to have voided the actions
announced on Mr. Suntai’s behalf on
Wednesday.