THE Taraba State House of Assembly has elected John Bonzena as its new Speaker.

Bonzena was elected during an emergency sitting on Wednesday, December 21.

The development followed the resignation of the former Speaker, Joseph Kunini, a professor.

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Kunini, elected Speaker in 2019, cited personal reasons for his resignation in a letter transmitted to the lawmakers earlier on Wednesday.

There were reports that Kunini has been having disagreements with the state governor Darius Ishaku over the non-payment of seven years of outstanding allowances of the staff of the state assembly, under the umbrella of Parliamentary Staff Association of Nigeria (PASAN), Taraba State chapter.

Also, under Kunini, the state assembly rejected the governor’s plan to sell some state-owned properties including the Highland Tea company located at the Mambilla Plateau, in the Sardauna Local Government Area.

Hamman Adama, who stood as the Speaker pro-tempo during the emergency sitting, called for the nomination of the new Speaker.

Members unanimously elected Bonzena as the new Speaker.

Speaking to newsmen shortly after the emergency sitting, Bonzena promised to do his best to carry everyone along.

Bonzena, from Zing Constituency, was the former chairman House Committee on Education, as well as the Chief Whip of the 9th Assembly before his election as Speaker.