The All Progressive Congress (APC) Plateau State Chapter has debunked the allegation of employment and expansion of wage bills against Governor Simon Bako Lalong, stating that he remains the constitutionally elected Governor of the state until the handover to a new dispensation on May 29, 2023.
Recall that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in a statement signed by its State Publicity Secretary, Mr. John Akans, alleged that the outgoing administration is plotting evil against the incoming government by engaging in employment in the state civil service and expanding wage bills through contractual obligations and increased payroll.
The statement further depicted that no fewer than 11,000 workers of various cadres have been employed since the last general elections, especially in state-owned tertiary institutions.
In a swift reaction, the State Publicity Secretary of the APC, Hon. Slyvanus Namang, said in a statement that the position of the PDP was a clear mischief to tarnish the image of the APC-led government in the state.
“For the records, it is totally false and mischievous to claim that the Lalong administration has only embarked on employment in the civil and public service towards the twilight of his administration, but an ongoing exercise that began a few weeks after his assumption of office in May 2015 with the employment of over a thousand primary school teachers and the reinstatement of hundreds of sacked workers in Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).
“As part of its blackmail, the PDP in its release claims that the Lalong Administration is planning to convert unlisted government properties at Dogon Dutse and elsewhere within and outside the state to personal use. These are recycled, unsubstantiated claims by the party that are false in all their ramifications.”
Namang further debunked the allegation that the state Water Board can no longer supply water to the public due to power outages occasioned by non-payment for this essential utility, adding that one of the major achievements of Governor Simon Bako Lalong is the ending of the perennial water shortage in Jos, which understandably it is not comfortable with as it believes in seeing the public suffer.
He mentioned that what no one can take away from Governor Lalong is the restoration of peace, unity, and good governance in Plateau State, as opposed to the impunity that was perpetrated by his predecessor.
The APC therefore declared that anything that the PDP would do to undermine the existing peace and the peace-building legacies of the Lalong administration would be resisted by all patriotic forces in the state.
The party warned the PDP to retrace the very wrong and precarious steps it is contemplating taking for the sake of peace.
