Senator-elect, Khalifa Zannah, Dies of Liver Cancer
Borno State senator-elect Khalifa Ahmed Zannah, who was re-elected in the April, 2015 election on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to represent Borno Central Senatorial District at the National Assembly, died, Saturday, at age 60 after a brief illness.
He reportedly returned to the country from Germany on Thursday where he had been hospitalized. He has had a long drawn battle with liver cancer. He was a vocal critic of President Jonathan whom he accused of neglecting the plight of the people of Borno State.
Zannah, a ranking senator, who was once quoted as saying he knew where the abducted Chibok girls were being kept by their abductors, is the fifth senator to die in the seventh Senate.
Others who have died include Gyang Datung who represented Plateau North, Pius Ewherido who represented Delta Central, Awaisu Kuta who represented Niger East and Uche Chukwumerije who represented Abia North.
Zannah is a successful businessman, and a member of the board of many federal establishments.
In 2000, he was on the board of the National Electrical Power Authority (NEPA). In 2007, Zannah was one of the organisers of the Democratic Women Forum, an organisation that supported the political aspirations of former military ruler General Ibrahim Babangida.
He was also a member of the Power Sector Reform Committee. He is described as an elder with a good track record in public service.