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Tag: Simon Lalong

  • Plateau recovers N2.7b looted funds

    Plateau recovers N2.7b looted funds

    Plateau State Governor, Simon Lalong, on Friday said the state has recovered about N2.7 billion meant for teachers salaries, but looted from the state treasury.

    The governor said the state was yet to get the full bailout announced last year by Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to states in the country, adding that out of about N20 billion the state was to receive as bailout,  only N5 billion has been received.

    Lalong, who spoke at the All Progressive Congress (APC) Media Roundtable, said an accounting firm, KPMG has been engaged to audit the state government’s accounts.

    “When the result comes out, you will see what will happen in the state,” the governor stated.

    Lalong said he is already discussing with the CBN with a view to receiving the balance of the bailout, adding that the state has  liquidated the backlog of salaries owed workers in the state.

    “We only two month left to be paid,” he added.

     

  • Lalong urges ethnic groups to preserve languages

    Lalong urges ethnic groups to preserve languages

    Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau has urged ethnic groups in the country to preserve their languages and save them from extinction.

    Lalong made the call on Saturday at the 2015 Gamai Cultural Festival in Shendam Local Government Area of the state, where he hails from.

    He said that languages were vital tools for interacting and expressing ideas, emotions, knowledge, memories and values.

    “Languages are also primary vehicles of cultural expressions and intangible cultural heritage, essential to the identity of individuals and groups.

    “Safeguarding endangered languages is thus, a crucial task in maintaining cultural diversity, worldwide.

    “The United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO’s) recent reports on endangered languages shows that half of the 6,700 languages spoken all over the world are in danger of disappearing before the century ends.

    “Already, 417 languages are almost out of use; 47 of them are in Africa and 15 are from Nigeria,” the governor said.

    He also said that language remained a weapon of cultural empowerment and should not be allowed to die like many extant languages of the world.

    Lalong assured that the state government, through the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality and cultural associations, would ensure the streamlining of cultural festivals and boost the rich cultural heritage of the state.

    He urged the Gamai to use the festival with its theme: ‘’Unity and Peace’’ to ensure peaceful coexistence among the different groups in the state.

    Mr Thomas Shialsuk, President, Gamai Unity and Development Organization (GUDO), said the festival was to foster understanding between the Gamai nation and its neighbours as well as residents of Gamai land.

    Shialsuk thanked Plateau people for electing their son as the governor of the state.

    The Chairman of the occasion and Elder Statesman, Alhaji Yahaya Kwande, urged Gamai people to support the govenor to succeed.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the governor was honoured at the festival with a traditional attire and there was also display of cultural dances and a book launch.

  • Plateau set to revive dry port project

    The Plateau State Government is set to revive its Inland Dry Port project located in Heipang, which was terminated by the immediate past administration in the state.

    The state Governor, Simon Lalong, stated this when he paid a working visit to the Nigerian Shippers’ Council at the weekend.

    Lalong also said he would resuscitate the state’s dry port implementation committee to ensure the successful implementation and execution of the project.

    He stressed the urgent need to revive the project in view of the poor state of the national economy which has necessitated diversification by all tiers of government.

    Lalong listed some of the benefits expected from the proposed project to include job creation, business opportunity for importers and exporters and a turnaround of the state’s economy in the face of dwindling oil revenue.

    He assured local and foreign investors of adequate security of their investments and personnel, saying the government had put in place security measures to stem the tide of insecurity in the state.

    According to him, Plateau is safe for investors, contrary to what he described as speculations of security challenges characterised by incessant bloody communal clashes in many communities in the state.

    “I want to assure you that immediately I get back home, I will take adequate steps to re-validate and execute the project. I also appeal to other governors to do same because we are talking about developing the economy,” he said.

    The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council, Alhaji Hassan Bello, had, earlier in a speech, requested the governor to immediately re-validate the letter of exchange for the project site, which was revoked by the last administration in the state.

  • Update: Plateau Tribunal affirms election of Lalong

    Update: Plateau Tribunal affirms election of Lalong

    The Plateau election petition tribunal looking at the April 11 governorship election has upheld the election of Governor Simon Bako Lalong of the All Progressive Congress (APC) and equally dismissed the petition of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP)

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared Governor Lalong of APC winner of the election, but the candidate of PDP in the governorship election, a Senator Gyang Pwajok challenged the election results on allegation of fraud, irregularity and non-compliance with electoral guidelines.

    However, both INEC and APC went to the tribunal to defend the mandate arguing that the victory of APC was well deserved and met the laid down procedures.

    The tribunal in its judgement Monday declared that the petitioner failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt.

    In the judgement that lasted six hours, Chairman of the tribunal, Justice Johnson Candide said, “The petitioners, PDP and Senator Pwajok have failed to produce credible evidence to prove their allegations.

    He said, “The petitioner abandoned their criminal case and rely solely on the civil aspects to substantiate their petition, however, the evidence they provided were not substantial enough to convince the court into invalidate the election result declared by INEC.

    “The tribunal therefore has no option than to affirm the election results declared by INEC following the April 11, 2015 governorship election.

    “In other words, the petition of PDP and its governorship candidate is hereby dismissed for lack of merit and the election of Governor Lalong upheld having substantially complied with the electoral guidelines.”

  • Jang, wife, others indicted for hoarding govt vehicles

    Jang, wife, others indicted for hoarding govt vehicles

    A committee set up by Plateau state governor Simon Lalong to recover government vehicles from past government officials have indicted the immediate past governor Jonah Jang, his wife Ngo Talatu Jang and their aids of illegally hoarding government vehicles.

    The committee which was chaired by a former secretary to the state government Mr. Ezekiel Gomos said it has found out that the ex-governor and his wife are illegally in possession of 15 government vehicles.

    The committee made its finding known while submitting its report to the state government in government house Jos Tuesday.

    According to the committee, “the former governor and his wife were entitled to nine vehicles as approved by the state executive council, but government house records revealed that the former governor went away with 24 vehicles instead of 9.

    Mr. Gomos said, “The extra 15 vehicles contravene state’s policy put in place by the former Governor. And when contacted, the former governor refused to return the 15 vehicles in his possession.

    “We discovered that an atmosphere was created to give the impression that government vehicles were part of the entitlements of anyone working with the governor upon exit of office.

    “This wrong belief encourages all manners of persons including personal aids and domestic helps go away with such vehicles. This was accentuated by the rash of approvals given by the former governor to such aides immediately it was clear that a new administration was coming into office.

    Gomos further explained that the committee found that vehicles hoarded based on state council approval were 191 while vehicles hoarded based on the former governor’s executive fiat was 32 and vehicles taken away illegally without approval of the executive council were 24.

    Gomos however said the committee had recovered 30 vehicles while 28 former officers had refused to return their vehicles on the grounds that they were approved from the former governor, a decision he says contravenes the state council decision.

    The committee recommended that all appropriate court actions be taken by the state government to recover the vehicles.

    While receiving the committee report on behalf of Governor Lalong, Secretary to the state government, Rufus Bature said, “Government wish to commend the committee for a job well done, we also want to assure the committee that their efforts in producing the report will not be in vain.

    The SSG also assured people of the state that the APC led government will never allow those who looted government properties go scot free.

    However, ex-gov Jang was not available for response, he was said to have travelled out of the country. But his media aid, Chris Gyang simply described the committee report as a product of hatred and blackmail.

    He said, “It has become clear to us that the APC government have hatred for Senator Jang and are bent on doing anything to blackmail him. Senator Jang is out of the country at the moment; I will consult him and respond appropriately to the allegations in due course.”

  • I have not received salary as governor – Lalong

    I have not received salary as governor – Lalong

    Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau says he has not received salary as the governor since he assumed office on May 29.

    Lalong made this known on Sunday in a media parley with journalists in the state.

    The governor explained that he decided not take any salary because his focus was to first settle the backlog of salaries owed civil servants incurred before he assumed the leadership of the state.

    “We want to take care of the salaries of civil servants first before we look at ourselves.

    “We are yet to constitute the cabinet because we inherited a very huge debt, as soon as the debts are reduced we will constitute the cabinet,’’ he explained.

    He explained that the delay in the constitution of the cabinet was deliberate and mostly to save cost.

    Meanwhile, Lalong had appealed journalists to be fair in their reportage as some of the reports that go to the press are not true reflection of the situation.

    According to the governor, the recent reports that state government was not doing anything regarding the security situation bedevilling the state was untrue.

    “What we read in the papers is not the true reflection of the situation, because security is our number one priority, the state government in collaboration with Operation Safe Heaven has gone very far.

    “We have already put in a lot and we are not relenting. Let us be patient, we will do our best to protect the lives of the people of Plateau as that is the essence of government anywhere in the world,’’ he said.

    The governor explained that after series of consultations with the Fulani and Berom elders they have decided to set up a 14-man peace committee.

    “The committee witnessed a setback after as soon as it was constituted because of series of attacks that rocked the area but they have resumed.

    “We learnt that they have made some progress and have taken some far reaching decisions which we believe would help in ending the crises,’’ he added.

    Lalong, however, appreciated the journalists for their contribution to the sustenance of peace in the state.

    He said that elections in the state wouldn’t have been peaceful if the reports of the journalists in the state were meant for peace.

    Mr Yakubu Taddy, Chairman, Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Plateau Council, commended the government for the parley, descriding the media interaction was a good forum for accountability.

    Taddy, who called for a quarterly interaction between journalists and the governor, said that such forum would do away rumours that make the rounds.