Gyang Bere, Jos
Plateau Youths under the umbrella of Jos South Advocates for Democracy and Good Governance have rejected the tenure elongation for Caretaker Committee Chairmen for Jos South, Jos North, Barkin-Ladi and Riyom Local Government Area of Plateau State for a period of six months.
Chairman of the group Rwang Joseph Dung stated this on Monday during a press conference in Jos and said the youths cannot wait for another six months without the conduct of elections in the four affected council areas.
He said the indefinite suspension of local government elections by Plateau State Independent Electoral Commission (PLASIEC) in October 10, 2018 in four out of the 17 local government areas of the state was undemocratic and has hindered development in the areas.
“We reject in totality, the recent illegal tenure elongation of six months for APC Jos South Local Government Management Committee headed by its party’s Chairmanship candidate for suspended Jos South council polls,” he said.
“The action of the APC dominated State House of Assembly few days to Christmas was provocative and proof that these crop of state legislators are only interested in their personal welfare and not the welfare of the people.”
Dung said Governor Simon Lalong who orchestrated the plan has democratic structures in his Shendam Local Government Area and others where councilors are given constituency allowance for the development of their wards to the detriment of Jos South.
He lamented that PLASIEC suspended the elections on the basis of insecurity, even though the people of Jos South participated in the 2019 presidential, National Assembly, Governorship and state House of Assembly elections without any violence.
Dung described the contract for the roofing of Jos South Local Government Secretariat that is not up to 10 years of existence running into hundreds of millions as fraudulent.
He said that Governor Lalong was afraid of defeat, claiming that is why he has not ordered for the conduct of the council election in Jos South, Jos North, Barkin-Ladi and Riyom Local Government Areas.
