To substantiate his claim that he is ready and capable of resuming his official duties as governor, lawmakers in Taraba State have summoned ailing Danbaba Suntai to address them.
The lawmakers’ summon followed a letter written by Suntai to them, informing them of his return to the country and desire to resume his official duties.
They are still not sure if Suntai has sufficiently recovered to resume his duties, considering his inability to speak to anyone since he returned from America.
Suntai who returned to the country on Sunday after 10 months overseas for medical treatment following injuries he sustained in a plane crash, is said to be holed up inside the Government House at Jalingo and refused to see anybody.
On arrival at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport on Sunday, Suntai who looked frail and unable to walk unassisted was guided into a waiting car by two of his aides who held him by the arms.
He neither spoke to journalists nor acknowledged the cheers by hundreds of his supporters who came to the airport to welcome him.
However, the governor of Adamawa State, Murtala Nyako was allowed to see him yesterday in the inner office of the Government House. Nyako, it was learnt, prayed for the sick governor and wished him speedy recovery.
Efforts by the lawmakers to see Suntai yesterday were rebuffed by his security aides who turned them back at the gate of the Government House. Due to the inability of the lawmakers to have an audience with the governor, they postponed deliberations on the letter written by Suntai, seeking to take over the reins of government from his deputy, Alhaji Umar Garba, who has been acting in his absence.
Many of the lawmakers, P.M.NEWS gathered, were unsure of the physical and mental state of the governor and would prefer him coming to the chambers of the assembly to address them and clear all doubts as to his state of health.
Already youth groups in Jalingo, Osun and Lagos states have called on the ailing governor to appear in public and address the people. They urged the governor to come clean on his health condition so as to remove all doubts about his ability to resume duty as the governor of the state.
One of the groups known as Coalition of Taraba Youth Movement, called on the state’s House of Assembly to summon Suntai to speak to the people of the state.
The President of the coalition, Malam Abubakar Waziri, made the call at a news conference on Monday in Jalingo.
Waziri noted that people of the state had been praying for the ailing governor for the past 10 months and now that he had returned, the uncertainty surrounding his health should be put to rest.
“We want Governor Suntai to speak to the people of the state, either through the media or at the House of Assembly. The state is in a state of confusion now because the people do not know what to believe,” he said.
Suntai has not uttered a word neither has he made any public appearance as his family and personal aides said that his doctors had advised that he should rest for at least 72 hours after his return.
Meanwhile, the Acting Governor of Taraba, Alhaji Garba Umar, has lauded the people of the state for turning out peacefully to welcome Governor Suntai back to the state.
Umar made the commendation in a short address in Jalingo, yesterday.
He also thanked the people of the state for the show of love and affection to the ailing governor.
culled:PMNews
No comments:
Post a Comment