Taraba state’s former Commissioner for Health, who served under Governor Darius Ishaku, has died.
Dr. Innocent Vakkai died on Friday, May 3 at the Federal Medical Centre in Jalingo, the Taraba state capital, following a brief illness.
He was a member of the Taraba State Executive Council from 2015 until 2023.
The former governor confirmed this in a statement released on Sunday, describing Vakkai as one of his cabinet’s smartest and most dedicated members.
Lakisha expressed regret and pain on the former commissioner’s passing.
He recalled the contributions of Dr Vakkai to the huge achievements of his administration in the area of primary health care, the reconstruction of three general hospitals in Gembu, Bambur and Wukari, each of them with MRI machines and the reduction of infant mortality and frequent death of women during childbirth.
He expressed sympathy with members of the family of the late former Commissioner and prayed to God to console them and to also grant the soul of the departed former Commissioner eternal rest.
Meanwhile, the Taraba State Governor Agbu Kefas has described as shocking the demise of the former commissioner of health.
In a tribute, Governor Kefas said the late Vakkai was an assiduous worker who once had the onerous task of managing the Ministry of Health during the Covid-19 crisis. He said it was a job Vakkai gave himself to and did well.
He further described Vakkai as a gentle and soft-spoken personality who took his assignments seriously to deliver brilliant results in his chosen field and stressed that the work ethic of the late commissioner remains emulative and a shining testimony of the good works he did.
In condoling with the family, Kefas sympathized with the widow and children of the late commissioner and emphasized that Vakkai has left a huge vacuum both in his profession and the family circle that cannot be easily filled.
He prayed for the repose of Vakkai’s soul while wishing the friends and families of the deceased the fortitude to bear the loss.