Former Deputy Senate President Ibrahim Mantu is dead, family sources confirmed to Channels Television.   Mantu died in a private hospital in Abuja in the early hours of Monday after falling ill.

A family source, who confirmed the demise to our correspondent, said he died at a private hospital in Abuja after nine days of sickness and isolation.

He said the former deputy senate president died at about 2am on Tuesday.

“He fell ill about nine days ago and was receiving treatment at home but he was rushed to the hospital when there was no sign of improvement,” the source said adding that the funeral prayer would hold later on Tuesday, in Abuja.

Mantu was one of the notable figures in the nation’s political landscape for many years.

In 2001 he was elected Deputy Senate President under the platform of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), a position he held till 2007 when he did not return to the senate.

Mantu, who hails from Gindiri District in Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State, worked in various establishments before joining politics