BusinessDay 28 Mar 2018

Wednesday 28 March 2018
C002D5556
BUSINESS DAY
17
2019: The scramble for Plateau State takes new dimension
HOPE IKWE DOSUNMU, Jos
As 2019 election fast
approaches and Nigerians
gear up for the
forthcoming elections,
politicians and political
parties in Plateau state are beginning
to strategize, capitalising
on their strengths and the weaknesses
of rival parties.
The ruling All Progressives Congress
(APC) in the state led by
Governor Simon Lalong strongly
believes that the works of the present
administration are the lucky
card that the party can play to win
the game.
The chairman of the Vote Lalong
Again (VOLA) team, IliyaAjang, is
of the opinion that they need no
much strategy as the work of the
governor will speak for him.
“This administration has constructed
22 new roads of more than
20km each in the 17 Local Government
Areas of the state. Governor
Lalong has continued with the
project of the last administration,
initiated project of road construction
to Mararaba Jama, Miango
Road, State and Federal Lowcosts,
Donkat Bali and Tudunwada Ring
R o a d ”.
Speaking on agriculture, he said
the Fertilizer Blending Plant that
was abandoned in Bokkos with just
22 staff for eight years has been revamped
and now has 234 workers
running three shifts per day under
the leadership of Lalong.
“We are not only supplying fertilizer
to Plateau State but to the neigbouring
Nassarawa State and we
are moving towards food security in
the state. In fact farmers are saying
this is the best administration ever,
they have access to fertilizer easily
and value has been added to their
farm produce,” he added.
Ajang also said that the works of
Lalong is visible for the electorate
to see in the area of education as
many PTA teachers paid N5000 to
N10000 per month and could not
give their best have been employed
as 800 teachers and 200 non- teaching
staff were recently employed.
Simon Lalong
He also noted that the present
administration has scored a point
in peace and stability in the state
saying “we have a peace agency
started in Plateau State by this
administration; we have achieved
peace in Plateau State that is why
the president is using Plateau State
as a model for other states in the
country”.
On the issue of Obasanjo’s coalition,
Ajang said “I concur that the
coalition is dead on arrival. I have
seen PDP break into two, some
are joining SDP so nobody is talking
about Obasanjo’s coalition.
Ironically after former President
Obasanjo said that President Buhari
should go and rest, he later
confessed that Buharisucceeded
where they have failed when the
modular refinery was commissioned
in Bayelsa. It is the same
Buhari constructing tarred road
in Otuoke the former President
Goodluck Jonathan’s village”.
According to him the only opposition
he believes the ruling APC
has in Plateau State is PDP “because
we dethroned them and can
be seen as the party present but not
to be feared. Plateau people know
them, what they could not do we
are doing, during the PDP administration
in the state projects were
concentrated in only one ethnic
group but now projects are spread
all over the 17 Local Government
Areas in the state. The PDP is weak
and may just be strategizing for
many years to come”.
The People’s Democratic Party
(PDP) however in its reaction,
believes that the ruling party in
the state has failed woefully adding
that this failure is to its advantage.
The Plateau State Secretary of
PDP Emma Tuang said the past
administration of Jonah Jang of the
PDP initiated most of the projects
that the President Buhari came to
commission. Tuang said “their failure
is a campaign in the favour of
the PDP. We are maximally happy
that there is complete disenchantment
and Nigerians have tasted the
bitter aspect of change in Plateau
State. We have no problem; we
are fully ready to remove Lalong
come 2019”.
Tuang, said that over 20 candidates
have indicated interest in
contesting for governorship of the
state on the platform of the PDP but
will only be taken seriously when
they have purchased the Expression
of Interest form stressing that
“PDP is a fertile ground. The bad
eggs in PDP are now in APC, PDP
is not afraid of anything”.
He however believes that the
Obasanjo’s coalition is an uphill
task and queried why Obasanjo,
who he said is a respected elder
statesman and was part of the APC
change, is distancing himself from
it. He stated that “politics need a
lot of structures on ground. Winning
elections is at the ward level
and people bought into the APC
change because they needed a
c h a n g e ”.
He therefore stated that the
APC on the Plateau cannot use the
power of incumbency to win election
adding that “the change has
given the worse and people should
vote according to their conscience
and protect their votes, nobody
needs to be told.”
The Action Democratic Party (
ADP), a party gaining recognition
on the Plateau prides itself as being
a party distinct from the ruling APC
and the major opposition party,
the PDP.
Chairman of the party in Plateau
state, Nanyah Daman, said
the party is adopting the “Option
A Four” system of party primaries
where every card carrying member
will have a say in the election and
selection of candidates. “Before
now political parties allow money
bags to hijack politics but this
system that is determined by the
popularity of a candidate allows for
the best candidate with the know
how,” he said.
Nanyah, who enumerated the
party’s ideals as all inclusive, youth
and women driven, party supremacy
and candidate’s popularity
said “ADP believes in all- inclusive
governance, President Buhari and
Governor Lalong are known for
nepotistic appointments. Every
tribe will be included in the ADP
government on the Plateau”.
“The reappointment of commissioners
is ridiculous. Out of
the previous 17 commissioners
only 6 did not return, the governor
increased the commissioners to 23
with no youth. We are the ones that
solicited for a change of cabinet
because the previous ones were not
performing but the whole process
is now a total failure”.
“Elective positions and appointments
will be given to women
and youths 25 percent each and
ADP believes in party supremacy.
NPN and NPP chairmen were very
powerful in 1979. Solomon Lar got
feedback from the people generated
from the grassroots then and
projects emanated from the people
themselves unlike what we have
today that you see abandoned
project because the project is not
necessarily what the people need
but the initiative of the government,”
he added.
The chairman said ADP is ready
to take over power from APC on
the Plateau because of the failure
of the government adding that
employment of teachers in the state
benefitted the Goemai extract, the
ethnic group of Governor Lalong
or people who paid their ways in.
The recent suspension of tricycle
riders in the state according to
Daman is an action that will work
against Lalong in 2019 stressing
that “even those belonging to APC
said they will vote ADP”.
Nanyah said that the ADP fits
well into the description of former
President Obasanjo’s coalition
even though they are not part of
the coalition saying “we are a third
force and fast growing party with
structure and our presidential
candidate just turned 37. Obasanjo
is a booster to the party as “even
PLAISEC is commending us for
bringing in the force and we do not
have recycled faces”.
He therefore advised Plateau
people not to repeat the mistake
of 2015 and “not to throw away the
baby with the bath out of annoyance.
We should allow this new
baby to grow to industralize Plateau,
boost agriculture and allow
faster development” he said.
I am not dragging leadership of PDP with Ladoja in Oyo, says Makinde
AKINREMI FEYISIPO, Ibadan
A
governorship aspirant
under the platform
of Peoples Democratic
Party (PDP), in Oyo
State, Oluwaseyi Makinde has
declared that he is not dragging
the leadership of the party with
a former Governor of the state,
Senator Rasidi Adewolu Ladoja.
Contrary to insinuations in
some quarters, Makinde said
Ladoja being a former Governor,
at all times is still his leader considering
his political experience,
age and influence.
According to him, the former
Governor remains my father politically
and there is no need for
him to drag the leadership of the
party with him.
Speaking at the maiden interactive
session he organised for
executive members of the party
cut across the 351 wards and the
33 local government areas of the
state held in Ibadan, the state
capital he said: “Some people said
I am dragging the leadership of
the party with Senator Ladoja, it is
not so. He is still the leader of the
party in the state and my leader
in Oyo state”.
He said that the party members
should work toward ensuring that
the aim of the party to send the
ruling All Progressives Congress
(APC) away in 2019 come to past.
Makinde said: “What we want to
do is to send APC away in 2019. After
that, we will call ourselves and
move forward. I am not here to
declare my governorship ambition
but to ensure that I interact with
party executives. The essence of
Oluwaseyi Makinde
this meeting is to interactive with
them, the party executives. All the
33 local government areas in Oyo
State. We have the opportunity to
meet them and interact with them
from our various local government
areas.
“I am a member of the party, I
am entitled to interact with them,
the executive of the party, when
it is time for me to formally declare,
we have done it before, we
know how to do it. Declaration
is not something that you do in
the corner of your room. It is to
tell the people what you have for
them. Politics is all about conflict
and resolution, there may be challenges
but we will address them
as family across board within the
party so that we can move forward
and face the APC.
“All of us need to go and read
the constitution of our party. So I
am begging all of us, that don’t let
us fight ourselves. Let us ensure
we work together, work for peace
to reign. I have called Senator Ayo
Adeseun, I have called Jumoke
Akinjide and I have sent text message
to Senator Ladoja.
“I am begging you to come out
and let people know that we are
ready to chase APC out of power.”
At the interactive session were
leaders of the party among whom
were Jacob Adetoro, Ex- Speakers
of the State House of Assembly,
Moroof Atilola and Kehinde
Ayoola, Aderemi Ayodele, Dotun
Oyelade, Bisi Olopoeyan and other
leaders of the party in the state.