Ex-Gov Jang hits Lalong, says outgoing governor derailed Plateau for eight years

A former governor of Plateau State, Jonah Jang on Monday, condemned the outgoing administration of Governor Simon Lalong, accusing him of derailing the state’s  development in the last eight years

The former governor, however, called on the governor-elect of the state, Caleb Mutfwang not to spare any efforts in rebuilding the state when he assumes office on May 29.

Jang stated this in reaction to last minutes activities of the outgoing administration, including the commissioning of some projects.

The former governor, in a statement on Monday by his Media Consultant, Clinton Garuba, lamented that the state of governance in the state had nosedived under Lalong in the past eight years to the extent that “one would not envy the incoming administration for the enormity of work that it has to do in rebuilding the people’s trust in Government, its programmes and policies”.

The statement reads in part: “At a time when sections of the state have come under attacks from people hell-bent on waging genocide on the people, the Government is rather hurriedly commissioning projects, some of which it even inherited as ongoing projects of the Jang administration to cover for 8 years of nothingness. Perhaps the government realized too late in the day that it had pursued personal political gains to the detriment of the general well-being of the State and is in a hurry to claim that it at least did something when in fact did almost nothing.

Read also: Survivors of Tuesday attack on Plateau communities recount experience as death toll rises to 85

“Every Plateau citizen knows that since the return of democracy in 1999, no government has paid attention to roads and infrastructure like the Jang administration. If Lalong and those who have failed to advise him on the need to be truthful as a leader think that they built Jos, the Plateau State capital from its foundation, let them continue to live in delusion. The outcome of the elections is a testimony to their performance in the last 8 years. Had they done better, Plateau people would have said so through the ballot box. Having failed, the best thing would be to quietly leave and continue with the lobby for appointment at the federal level where he had spent years of servitude abandoning the state to suffer a lack of leadership and governance.

“For now, the Lalong administration should concentrate on clearing their tables as it is only a few days to the handover and the prayer on the lips of many a plateau person is, “May Lalong and this type of administration never happen to us again.”

The former governor, while commiserating with all the grieving communities, prayed that the swearing-in of the coming administration will bring succor to the people and return the state to the path to progress and development.

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