Barely a week after the death of
Speaker of Taraba State House of Assembly, Haruna Tsokwa under circumstance
that is still generating different interpretations in the Taraba state, the
state house of assembly this morning elect new speaker.
Premium Times reports, the
bereaved Taraba state House of Assembly now has a new Speaker.
The Assembly this morning
elected Josiah Kente as new Speaker to replace Haruna Tsokwa who died
after a brief illness on November 4.
Details of the election that
produced Mr. Kente is, however, still sketchy. But initial reports suggest Mr.
Kente, a former deputy majority leader of the Assembly, emerged by consensus
after members agreed to retain the speakership position in the Southern
Senatorial Zone of the state.
Late Speaker Tsoka hailed from
that part of the state.
Deputy Speaker Tanko Maikerifi
was reportedly disqualified to allow for religious balancing in the leadership
of the state. Acting Governor Garba Umar is muslim and the lawmakers believe
another muslim should not be allowed to lead the second most powerful arm of
government in the state.
Mr. Tsokwa died of a yet
undisclosed ailment on the morning of November 4 at the Federal Medical Centre,
Jalingo, the Taraba state capital.
The late speaker was a staunch
supporter of Acting Governor Garba in the ongoing battle for the control of the
state.
Mr. Tsokwa had escaped death by
the whiskers on September 19 when suspected gunmen attacked his convoy along
the Jos – Abuja road.
He escaped unhurt but some
policemen in his convoy sustained various degrees of gunshot wounds during an
exchange of fire between them and their attackers.
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