TELL Magazine

The remains of former Speaker, Edo State House of Assembly, Zakawanu Garuba, were yesterday laid to rest in Auchi, Etsako West LGA, without his widow, Hassana paying him her last respect. This is because she had remained in the den of kidnappers who attacked her vehicle and abducted her while conveying her late husband’s remains to Auchi from Abuja for burial. Her driver was also abducted.

Garuba, a lawyer, died in the early hours of Saturday, July 18 after a brief illness. Though his death had been attributed to complications from the coronavirus disease, the family said he died of natural causes.

There was great relief amongst the late Garuba’s friends and associates when the news went round Saturday night that his kidnapped widow had been released which turned out to be false. The burial however went on without her. Family sources hinted that negotiations with the kidnappers have started.

The magazine gathered that the burial of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP stalwart was conducted in strict observance of the social distancing regulations by the National Centre for Disease Control, NCDC.

His corpse had arrived his Auchi country home on Saturday and he was immediately buried after a solemn ceremony witnessed by family members and few close political associates.

Garuba, 55, is survived by his wife, Hassana, three children, and an aged mother. His last political outing was the Edo PDP governorship primary election at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium, Benin where the state governor, Godwin Obaseki emerged the party’s governorship candidate for the September 19 election.