The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Suntai

  • Taraba acting governor visits Suntai in Germany Friday

    Taraba acting governor visits Suntai in Germany Friday

    Acting Governor of Taraba State, Alhaji Garba Umar will on Friday visit his ailing boss, Danbaba Danfulani Suntai in Hannover, Germany, 90 days after the governor was flown out for treatment.

    Suntai was flown to Germany after a plane he flew crashed near Yola Airport in October last year.

    Umar left the state capital -Jalingo for Abuja on Wednesday for a meeting with state governors.

    He held another conference on Thursday (also in Abuja) with Taraba stakeholders, preparatory to his departure to Germany on Friday, his Chief Press Secretary Mr. Kefas Sule, told The Nation.

    This is the first time the acting governor will visit Suntai in the hospital -to see [for himself] the governor’s true state of health.

    Umar only saw his boss –with fractures, on the night of October 25, 2012 at the Medical Diagnostic Section of the Specialist Hospital, Yola, where Suntai was first rushed to for initial treatment.

    The acting governor noted during the weekly State Executive Council (SEC) meeting that his visit to the ailing governor was delayed due to “difficulties with visa.”

    Suntai was on board the ill-fated Cessna 208 aircraft with his Aide de Camp (ADC) Dasat Iliya, the Chief Security Officer (CSO), Timo Dangana and his Chief Detail, Joel Dan.

    They all survived the mishap, but sustained varying degrees of injuries. Two of the governor’s aides –the CSO and the Chief Detail have since recovered and returned to the country.

    But the governor and his ADC are still being treated in Germany.

    Because of the governor’s absence, Umar who was only sworn in on October 5 last year, to replace impeached Sani Abubakar Danladi, (few days before the air crash), was empowered by the state Assembly to hold forte for the ailing governor.

     

  • Suntai out of hospital

    Suntai out of hospital

    •Wife delivered of twins

    AILING Taraba State Governor Danbaba Fulani Suntai has made his first public appearance – not physically, but in a photograph (right) – in about 67 days.

    Suntai flew the plane which crashed on October 25 near the Yola Airport.

    He has been discharged from the German hospital where doctors treated him for multiple fractures, The Nation learnt yesterday.

    In the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) photograph, apparently taken by an amateur, Suntai looks darker than he used to be. He is holding his baby – one of the twins his wife, Hajia Hauwa, was delivered of on December 6, also in Germany – and looking straight into the camera, his wife is holding the other.

    His Excellency is dressed in a white oversize (neck) shirt under a grayish jacket. His face is expressionless; unlike those of his beaming friend and wife. Suntai’s head and chin look clean shaven.

    In the photograph, which is said to have been taken in the canteen of an unnamed German hospital, the governor sits on a dark leather chair that is obviously different from the others in the canteen. In front of him is a plate of food, which looks half-eaten, a set of cutlery, cups and a salt jar.

    Standing behind Suntai is a man wearing a thick black winter jacket (the type worn by security agents). His face is covered by the camera.

    The reason for the release of the picture was not immediately known yesterday. It came amid the rumour that Suntai may have been permanently incapacitated.

    Senator Emmanuel Bwacha (Taraba South), a close friend of Suntai, said the birth of the twins doubled the celebration in Suntai’s home, following his discharge from hospital.

    It was gathered that Suntai’s wife was expectant when the governor got involved in the crash.

    Her trip to Germany to assist her husband at the hospital changed the plan for her to delivered of the babies in the United States.

    With the twins, the Suntai family now has five children – four girls and a boy (one of the twins).

    Bwacha said the governor was not in a hurry to return home because he wants to be fully fit.

    Besides, he added, the governor has confidence in the ability of tActing Governor Garba Umar to carry on.

    Some people described as Suntai’s supporters are said to be planning to visit him.

  • Plane crash: ‘Suntai has started speaking’

    Plane crash: ‘Suntai has started speaking’

    Taraba State Governor, Danbaba Suntai, who was involved in a plane crash and was taken to Germany for treatment is recovering fast.

    He has started speaking.

    Suntai spoke on Wednesday from the German hospital on telephone with the Senator representing Taraba South, Hon. Emmanuel Bwacha.

    Bwacha, who is the governor’s personal friend, had been with the governor at the Medical Diagnostic Section of the Specialist Hospital, Yola, and the National Hospital Abuja, where the governor was rushed to for initial treatment before he was flown abroad.

    He has also been with the governor in the German hospital and just returned to Nigeria on Wednesday.

    Bwacha, who spoke to journalists shortly after his conversation with Suntai said: “the governor started speaking before I left for Nigeria. But his voice is more audible and clearer on telephone now.

    “His wife –the First Lady initial spoke with me, and then she handed over the phone to the governor who spoke with a discernible voice.”

    Bwacha allayed the fears that the governor would be incapacitated.

    He also disproved the rumours that the governor has spinal cord damage and was bleeding from a fractured head.

    According to him, Suntai, at the time of the accident, was injured in the abdomen, had a fracture on the hand and his whole body swollen, which made him unconscious.

    He said: “The governor is recovering fast. His state of health was stabilized when I left him in Germany. I am surprise to hear the rumour in Nigeria that he has a problem with his head and spinal cord. It is not true.

    “Ideally, a plane crash is not a bicycle accident; he needs time to recover well. In fact, it was by divinity from God that he even survived the air crash. Those with evil wishes would be put to shame and would definitely not go unpunished.”

     

  • ‘Suntai is responding to treatment’

    Taraba State Governor Danbaba Danfulani Suntai, who was injured in a plane crash, is responding to treatment, the Senator representing Taraba South, Emmanuel Bwacha, said yesterday.

    The senator spoke after visiting the governor in a German hospital.

    Bwacha told The Nation on phone from the German hospital that Suntai was recuperating.

    He quoted the team of doctors treating the governor as saying, “your governor is responding very well; he is in a stable condition”.

    Bwacha, who is Suntai’s friend, was with the governor at the Medical Diagnostic Section of the Specialist Hospital, Yola, where he was rushed to for initial treatment, after the crash.

    He was also seen beside the governor at the National Hospital in Abuja before he was flown abroad.

    The senator dispelled the rumour that the governor was bleeding from the head.

    He said: “It is not true. His Excellency is responding well, although other psychotherapy questions could be answered by the doctors.”

    On October 25, the Cessna 208 aircraft the governor was piloting crashed near Yola, the Adamawa State capital, with his Aide de Camp (ADC) Dasat Iliya; the Chief Security Officer (CSO) Timo Dangana and Chief Detail Joel Dan on board.

    Bwacha yesterday allayed the fears that the governor might be in danger, adding that the doctor assured him that Suntai will recover.

    He said: “His body was swollen because of the injury. But there is nothing wrong with his eyes or entire head. His senses have also not been lost.”

    Bwacha promised to visit the governor’s aides today.

  • Plane crash: Suntai’s ADC, two others flown abroad

    Plane crash: Suntai’s ADC, two others flown abroad

    •Stakeholders oppose elevation of Deputy Governor as acting governor

    The Aide-de-Camp (ADC) to the Governor of Taraba State, Dasat Iliya, and two others who were injured in the October 25 plane crash in Yola, were yesterday flown abroad for further treatment.

    Also flown out were the governor’s Chief Security Officer, Timo Dangana, and the Chief Detail, Joel Dangana.

    It was learnt that they were transferred from the National Hospital, Abuja to Germany where Governor Danbaba Suntai is also receiving treatment after the Cessna Plane crash.

    After a week in the National Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit, the ADC was said to have started talking a bit, showing that he had regained consciousness.

    The three men were evacuated from the National Hospital at about 8.00am in an ambulance to the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport.

    They were later flown to Germany at about 9am in an Air Ambulance, MED EVAC, Challenger 601(Registration No. D-BUSY).

    A reliable source said: “Of the three patients, only the ADC who has been in the Intensive Care Unit requires a referral attention in Germany.

    “As a matter of fact, we have successfully managed the injuries sustained by the Chief Security Officer and the Chief Detail. If they had remained at the National Hospital, they would have been discharged soon because we have necessary facilities and equipment. The personal physician to the Governor, Dr. Ahmed Kara can bear testimony to what we, have done to care for them.

    “We, however learnt that in deference to public opinion and based on the desire of the governor to see them personally that they are okay, that is why the state government made arrangement for their trip to Germany.

    “The governor has been briefed on their recovery but if he sees the three, he will be convinced that they are alive. That will also serve as a psychological booster for the governor too.

    “Well, while abroad, the two officers will have an opportunity for a second opinion on the best we have offered.”

    Responding to a question, the source added: “We could not evacuate them to Germany immediately because we needed to process their visas. They cannot just enter Germany without valid immigration requirements.”

    It was also gathered that some stakeholders in Taraba State are opposed to the elevation of the Deputy Governor, Alhaji Garba Umar, to the status of an Acting Governor in line with Section 190 of the 1999 Constitution as amended.

    However, the federal government is watching the development in the state and may invoke constitutional provision whenever there is need for it.

    The section reads: “Whenever the Governor transmits to the Speaker of the House of Assembly a written declaration that he is proceeding on vacation or that he is otherwise unable to discharge the functions of his office, until he transmits to the Speaker of the House of Assembly to the contrary, such functions shall be discharged by the Deputy Governor as Acting Governor.”

    A top source said: “As far as the stakeholders are concerned, the governor is not in any way permanently incapacitated. You cannot read Section 190 in isolation; you have to consider Section 189 in totality.

    “The State Executive Council has not declared the governor as permanently incapacitated or suffering from a terminal infirmity. Members of the Executive Council are constantly in touch with the governor.

    “Also, the ethno-religious configuration of Taraba State is delicate such that the issue of being an acting governor must be handled with care to prevent a major political crisis.”

    A human rights lawyer, Festus Keyamo, had said that the Deputy Governor ought to serve as the acting governor of the state.

    He said: “My take is that the Deputy Governor should act in the stead of the Governor as the Acting Governor pursuant to section 190 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended). The 1999 Constitution (as amended) does not envisage any vacuum in governance that is why it clearly mandates the governor to transmit a written declaration to the Speaker of the House of the Assembly whenever he, the governor, is proceeding on a vacation or is otherwise unable to discharge the functions of his office.”

    A federal government official said: “We are watching the development in Taraba State with keen interest. At the appropriate time, we will invoke the necessary provision of the constitution to preserve democracy in the state.”

  • Suntai’s escape

    Suntai’s escape

    •The Taraba Governor’s plane crash raises important questions

    By the working of providence, the people of Taraba State and, of course Nigerians, are breathing a sigh of grateful relief rather than dripping with tears in an ambience of funeral sadness. The Governor of Taraba State’s escape from death in a plane crash last week, with five other persons also saved the nation the sort of unhappy story that trailed the now familiar story of the Dana Air crash whose many dead the families and the nation still mourn.

    The governor, Danbaba Fulani Suntai, is a trained pilot, and until the painful incident, many Nigerians never knew he flew himself in a private jet. Informed sources say he has flown himself regularly, while his colleagues relied on the expertise of pilots. But Suntai is a qualified pilot, even though he is a trained pharmacist.

    According the report, he was flying from Jalingo to Yola, but lost contact with the Yola control tower, and that led to the crash. Something good happened and that was the mobilisation of search and rescue personnel to the crash site. The governor and the others on the plane were moved to the hospital. At the time of writing, no fatalities have not been reported.

    Governor Suntai has been flown to Germany for treatment. The Taraba State chief executive has the right to fly as a qualified pilot. He trained at the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology, Zaria, Kaduna State in 2010. Given the delicate pressures of his task, we wonder if it was wise of him to take the task of running a state and flying an aircraft at the same time.

    Some governors also drive themselves and, even if they reserve the rights to do so, the weighty and intricate workload of their offices advise that they use the services of chauffeurs. Some may say the governors are mature enough to ascertain when the burden is light enough for them to fly an aircraft or sit behind the wheel of a Land Cruiser.

    We are not aware whether it was only the loss of contact that cost the crash or whether certain individual inadequacy added to the technical challenge.

    It was also reported that after the crash, the new deputy governor, Garba Umar, was harassed by some local politicians acting on the orders of a senator. The misfortune of the governor has suddenly taken the familiar tint of politics. The Taraba State House of Assembly affirmed Suntai as not relinquishing his position as governor.

    The political elite could not even allow a collective sense of sobriety overwhelm partisan discord. It is not important whether Governor Suntai is incapacitated or not. According to the constitution, if the governor is sick, the onus lies on the deputy to take charge. This should happen without rancour.

    If Umar takes charge though, he will be wrongly labelled with the ambitious tag of usurper. Power abhors vacuum.

    Governor Suntai’s failure to travel abroad with others who sustained injuries in the flight is palpably unfair. The governor has the resources to care for himself, but the injuries sustained by the other five came because he piloted them. Even if it was an error of weather or technology, the journey may not have happened if he did not embark on it and asked them to go with him.

    Again, if the medical system was not good enough for him as governor, then it means he did not create a good enough system for his fellow citizens. So why should he fly and leave the rest to the weaknesses of our medical system? Their families are protesting and they should. We hope they do not suffer any deaths or lifetime deformities or pathologies that a trip to Germany could have averted. It will be on the governor’s conscience if he returns to bury any victim – or console their families – he left behind.

     

  • Plane crash: Atiku canvasses prayers for Suntai

    FORMER Vice President Atiku Abubakar has called for fervent prayers for the speedy recovery of Taraba State governor, Danbaba Suntai, who is currently receiving treatment as a result of injuries he sustained in a plane crash last Thursday.

    In a statement by his media office in Abuja yesterday, the former Vice President described Governor Suntai as a man actively committed to creating harmony, unity, tolerance and peaceful co-existence among the diverse groups in Taraba State.

    He said as an indefatigable advocate of peaceful co-existence, Suntai is one of the youngest politicians for whom he has high regard.

    According to Atiku, such a politician with a passion for unity deserves the prayers of all Nigerians at this difficult moment in his life.

    The former presidential aspirant said Suntai is always close to his heart because they shared a common passion for ethnic and religious tolerance in the country.

     

  • Yola Plane Crash: How Fulani herdsmen saved Suntai’s life

    Yola Plane Crash: How Fulani herdsmen saved Suntai’s life

    • Drama as governor is flown to Germany

     

    Fulani herdsmen close to the scene of the Thursday plane crash in Yola involving Governor Danbaba Suntai of Taraba State and a few of his aides, were the first to rush to their aid, it was gathered yesterday.

    Sources in Yola said that but for the prompt response of the cattlemen who pulled the victims from the wreckage of the Cessna 208, it would have been difficult for the governor and the rest to survive. A rescue team from Yola later arrived the spot and transported the victims to the hospital.

    The injured Governor was flown to Germany yesterday for more treatment after a high drama played out by security agents at the National Hospital, Abuja to confuse newsmen who had gathered there to record his evacuation.

    First, the security operatives cordoned off parts of the hospital leading to the private ward of the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), where Suntai was receiving treatment. No human or vehicular movement was allowed in the area.

    Then ambulances belonging to the National Hospital and vehicles believed to be those of the State Security Service (SSS) made two decoy evacuations all in an attempt to ensure that no reporter would be around during the real evacuation.

    The vehicles drove out of the main gate only to return to the hospital a few minutes later.

    When all that did not work they eventually took away the governor at 1.57pm in the same State House Medical Centre Ambulance that brought him from the Abuja airport to the hospital on Friday. The governor remained heavily bandaged and wore an oxygen mask.

    In his convoy were six vehicles carrying doctors, security men, some legislators and close family members. Some of the vehicles in the convoy had the following registration numbers: Abuja CZ 724 RBC; Abuja CU 184 RSH; FG AD82A01; NPF 45839, BMW and a Toyota Prado Jeep BS 677 RSH.

    Earlier, a medical doctor and Mr. Ibrahim Wilson, a Superintendent of Police met for some minutes at the entrance of the ICU where the governor’s family, associates, government officials and security agents had been hovering over since Friday.

    At 12.45pm the driver of the State House ambulance marked SH 576 moved the vehicle from where it was parked to the entrance of the ICU. A security operative then moved round the corridor and said “no photograph, please. You are warned!”

    At 1.07pm Superintendent Wilson drove away everybody on the route the ambulance would take with apologies that it would be few minutes. A bag suspected to belong to the governor’s wife that would be travelling with him was deposted in the boot of a Toyota Prado.

    It was also gathered that the injuries to the governor’s right arm and head are quite massive. Another source decried a situation where there is no single plane to airlift critically injured trauma patients in the country.

    He said a new state-of-the-art Trauma centre with provision for a helipad has been constructed at the National Hospital, but expressed disappointment that Suntai had to be driven to the airport in his critical condition.

    The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) yesterday maintained that Nigeria has qualified manpower to handle critical conditions such as Suntai’s. In a statement, NMA Secretary General, Dr Akpufuoma Pemu, urged the Federal Government to do more by improving the healthcare infrastructure in the country.