Gov Lalong calls for reconciliation as Plateau celebrates ‘Forgiveness Day’

Plateau State Governor, Simon Lalong, has called on Nigerians from every region to reconcile with one another as the state celebrated the ‘3rd Plateau Day of Forgiveness and Reconciliation’ on Sunday.

At a special inter-denominational church service to mark the day at the St. Louis Catholic Church, in Jos, the state capital, Lalong said unless Nigerians learned to forgive one another and avoid revenge and reprisals, the nation will continue to witness needless bloodshed and destruction.

He added that though acts of “criminality must be swiftly investigated and punished by government and its relevant organs, the long-term ambition of every Nigerian who desires peace is to toe the path of reconciliation and forgiveness.”

Read also: Plateau Gov, Lalong, gives Commissioners conditions for re-appointment

The governor also said that in the past three years, the Plateau Peace Agency which he set up on assumption of office, held over 87 multi-level dialogue sessions with conflict parties across the 17 local governments of the state to promote the culture of peace through forgiveness and reconciliation.

This, he said, led to the signing of several peace agreements and commitments to the pursuit of peace agreements with various warring communities in the last five years.

Lalong also gave his support for a regulation of the social media and frowned at the “exploitation of the social media by crisis merchants who generate and circulate unfounded posts suggesting that there was no peace in Plateau State and that this government had not achieved anything.”

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