Buhari, Ekweremadu Mourn Former Deputy Senate President Mantu

By Deji Elumoye

President Muhammadu Buhari and immediate past Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, have mourned ex-Deputy Senate President, Senator Ibrahim Mantu.
The duo in separate condolence messages commiserated with Mantu’s immediate family and Plateau State Government on the demise of the former ranking Senator.

In his condolence message, the President condoled with family of former Deputy Senate President, Ibrahim Mantu, joining Plateau State Government and indigenes in mourning the passing of the renowned politician.
President Buhari, in a release issued on Tuesday by his Media Adviser, Femi Adesina, also commiserated with leaders and members of the National Aseembly, friends and political associates of the former Deputy Senate President, who dedicated most of his life to service of his people.

The President prayed for the repose of the soul of the departed, believing his legacy of reconciliation and promotion of peaceful co-existence will always be remembered, especially in bringing more harmony in his state and the country at large.
On his part, Ekweremadu, expressed sadness and shock over the death of his predecessor, Senator Mantu, noting that Nigeria had lost a legislative icon.
According to him, Mantu helped to shape the legislature in the current republic and also laid the foundation for the eventual successful amendments to the 1999 Constitution.

Reacting to the sad development vide a statement by his Media Adviser, Uche Anichukwu, Ekweremadu, who succeeded Mantu as Deputy President of the Senate in June 2007, said: “I received with a deep sense of loss the passing on of my predecessor, the late Distinguished Senator Ibrahim Mantu. This is a heavy loss to the nation, particularly the legislature where his impact was greatly felt.

“He played critical roles in reinventing the legislature with the advent of the current democratic era. In particular, as Deputy President of the Senate and Chairman of the Joint National Assembly Committee on Constitution Amendment, Senator Mantu will be remembered for pioneering the constitution amendment process in the current democratic dispensation in response to agitations over the many inadequacies and contradictions of the 1999 Constitution.

“Although no successful amendment was recorded in the Fifth National Assembly under him, obviously due to lack of template of procedure and experience by a National Assembly that was just truly re-emerging after decades of military rule, the challenges encountered by that attempt ably chaired by Distinguished Senator Mantu helped us to chart a procedure, avoid some pitfalls, and ultimately break the jinx in the Sixth National Assembly. Since then we have gone on to record many critical amendments especially in the areas of electoral reform and institutions building to deepen and strengthen our democracy”.

The Chairman of the Senate committee on Environment described Senator Mantu as an institution builder, recalling that the deceased lawmaker was the pioneer Chairman of the Policy Analysis and Research Project (PARP), a capacity building project for the National Assembly, which he later inherited as Mantu’s successor in 2007 and helped to transform into the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS).

He also described Mantu as a cosmopolitan and deft politician, who while in the legislature, saw the entire nation as his constituency.

“Senator Mantu was deeply embedded in the politics of not only the nation and our great party, the Peoples Democratic Party, but also in the politics of the apex legislature.

“Give it to him also, he was a man who spoke his mind, a dynamic, detribalised, flamboyant, and an engaging politician. There was never a dull moment with him. He will be highly missed”, the ranking Senator added.