L
LequteMan
Guest
Speaking through his senior special assistant on media and publicity Mr. Sylvanus Yakubu on Thursday, ailing Taraba State Governor Danbaba Suntai has accused his deputy, Alhaji Garba Umar, of betraying him and the whole state of Taraba by lusting after his (Suntai’s) office even though he trusted had confidence in him (Umar).
Yakubu, speaking with newsmen in Jalingo also reacted to Umar’s statement on Tuesday that he was 100 per cent loyal to Suntai and would not undermine his authority.
“The deputy governor keeps talking of 100 per cent loyalty, but the reverse is the case; his people are in court against Governor Suntai,” he said.
According to PUNCH, He said he had personally lost respect for Umar, who has been the state acting governor since October last year when Suntain sustained injuries when the small aircraft he flown crashed in nearby Adamawa.
“His (Umar’s) activities are a direct opposite of what he keeps saying.”
He said Umar bribed the state lawmakers to transmit power to him to continue to act. He also accused the deputy governor of being the sole financier in the suit Danbaba filed against some members of the House of Assembly.
He said Umar should have shown concern for the governor’s health and be loyal to him too. He added that Umar should have negotiated with Danbaba on how to solve the political impasse.
But instead, he said Umar had done the opposite by disregarding Gov. Danbaba’s dissolution and appointment of new executives.
“A cabal was trying to hijack the machinery of government,” he said.
Meanwhile, a former Speaker of the Taraba State House of Assembly, Alhaji Habu Isa, in a statement on Thursday has said that Umar’s continued stay in office as acting governor was constitutional.
He said Umar’s tenure as acting governor was in order since the House had passed a resolution for him to continue in that capacity till Suntail would be fit to resume his office.
