Mr. Jonah Jang.
By Marie-Therese Nanlong
Jos – The immediate past Governor of Plateau State, Senator Jonah Jang, says barring of his party, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP from Saturday’s local government council election is “a show of cowardice, travesty of justice and a mockery of democracy.”
Senator Jang lamented that the exercise which should evoke joy in the people for voting their leaders at the local level has turned out to be a charade and at no time in the history of the State since the return of democracy in 1999, has Plateau experienced “this kind of impunity as is perpetrated by the APC government of the day.”
The former Governor in a statement by Clinton Garuba, his Media Consultant noted if the APC government was as popular as it has portrayed itself to be, the right thing to do was to allow its state funded umpire conduct a free, fair and credible election to test its popularity.
The statement reads:
“As Plateau people go to the polls today to elect Local Council Chairmen for the 17 Local Government Areas, it is unfortunate that what should have a evoked joy for the people as they file out to elect the leaders closest to them will be nothing more than a charade, a show of cowardice, mockery of democracy or simply standing logic on its head. At no time in the history of Plateau State since the return of Democracy in 1999, has Plateau State experienced this kind of impunity as is perpetrated by the APC government of the day.”
“We must admit that this is the lowest we have descended to, by whatever parameters of governance we judge the current administration. To say that is it appalling that a government will do everything within its powers, not minding the political, socio-economic or even judicial consequences to the state and is to say the least.
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“This is a clear show of shame exhibited by the government and the APC in the State. If the APC government was as popular as it has portrayed itself to be, the right thing to do was to allow its state funded umpire conduct a free, fair and credible election to test its popularity.”
“The Plateau State government must bury its head in shame, denying the people their right to choice of candidates is the worst kind of impunity and anti-people treatment to receive from those who occupy elective office. If the performance of the government resonated with the people, there wouldn’t be any need to disenfranchise them but the only way out of a looming disgrace and a taste of what is to befall the APC anytime elections were held, was to remove the only hope of the people, the PDP from the ballot. What a show of cowardice.”
“The PDP approached the Courts, which should be the hope of the masses, with the hope that the sham of an election being held today will be stopped but the court in its wisdom thought it otherwise to allow the elections to hold. While it is too early to conclude that the Honourable judges erred, by not seeing the consequences of the elections, we hope that when the substantive suit is heard and the fallout of the elections will make them recant the decision and subsequently declare the election an illegality. The will of the people to choose those who should govern them overrides the personal or even collective will of a few people to subvert the process that recruits leaders and twist it in favour of primordial sentiments over the truth.”
“The act of cowardice displayed by the government and the APC in plateau state is a clear indication and further confirms that the people are not in support of the puppetry and subservience which the government of the day represents. To use state organs to deny parties participation in an election is a travesty and the height of mockery of democracy. This is not the Plateau that our founding fathers envisaged. To say that the Governor who is a lawyer and had served as the Speaker of the State House of Assembly will engage in such blatant disregard for due process is a thing of concern, especially that it is ordinarily expected that he should be above board.
“Such acts by a few put a dent on the highly respected legal profession, which practitioners should know better.
As things stand now, the government has gone ahead with the process of affirming its candidates for the election, shamefully in some LGAs as sole candidates but plateau people must not despair. This is not the time to allow the desperation of a few people to cling on to power, make us lose faith with the PDP. We assure our dear party faithful and all peace-loving Plateau people that we would do all within the ambit of the law to invalidate the illegality perpetrated by the State government and will work together to end the impunity even as we approach the general elections in 2023.”
“Remain calm, law abiding and keep faith with the only hope for redemption from the cluelessness that pervades the land.”
