Plateau 2015: From prayer to preface

Last month’s birthday celebration of Governor Jonah Jang of Plateau state was a grand slam in several respects. From economy to business and politics, the event was ground-breaking. More significantly, it was a twilight point in the prayer fiesta that has engaged the governor for some time now as to who succeeds him in 2015. UKANDI ODEY reports

It is a veritable draw between ‘never before’ and ‘never again’ as vexed factors in the shifting and balance of power in Plateau get more vexatious and vivacious as time ticks to 2015. Quite sentimentally and emotionally, ethnic stakes are high and boiling over the need for the gubernatorial slot of the state to move to Plateau South zone. In reversed coin dialectic, with same sentimental and emotional attachment, Plateau North argues that it is fair play for the finisher to re-start the game.

Not altogether dismissing the unwritten agreement of zoning or power rotation, the position of the governor, Jonah Jang so far is that he is not exactly persuaded by such sentiment and emotion. He argues that apart from the huge potential for enthroning mediocrity and compromising merit and quality, his government has invested heavily in the imperatives of leadership mentoring and sustainability of public service and accountability vision. Put otherwise, Jang prefers his successor to emerge from the present system – having benefitted from his two-term tutoring and demonstration of accountability and responsible governance.

The rag-tag and unwieldy so-called political opposition in the State has been livid with discontent and malcontent over this; their palpable fear being that the idea is a cynical pigeon hole for Jang to anoint his ethnic man and retain power in the Berom ethnic group of the State. Recently, a splinter group of the Jang Redemption class pupils, under the aegis of Redemption Integrity Group, in a press conference challenged the sincerity and spirituality of the unfolding scenario, dismissing it as facade and phantom, and offered to search, identify, and produce a credible and acceptable gubernatorial candidate that can take over and take Plateau through the next phase.

At the recent state rally of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the Plateau South Senatorial zone, Raymond Dabo, state deputy chairman of the party who hails from Shendam in the same zone, thought differently and took kin and foe headlong. He is reported to have urged Governor Jang, against the backdrop of the credible and creditable performance posted by his administration, to go ahead and anoint a successor, irrespective of zone and the idealism of rotational tenure, once he sees in the person such character and credentials to post similar performance and continue to develop Plateau.

Some ambitious politicians, especially from Plateau South, are angry and express disappointment in the position of Dabo, describing and dismissing him simultaneously as selfish and insensitive to the sensibilities of geo-politics and geopolitical clamouring. But against the hang man’s emotion, Dabo simply urged Jang to do good for Plateau without circumscribing his pool of choice. All the same, Dabo inadvertently set the tone which speakers during the orchestrated Jang birthday, some weeks later, brazenly perused, purveyed and rightly put in perspective.
From the cream of visitors and well wishers to the sermons and renditions, it was eloquent and unambiguous that Jang is a conqueror who has effectively conquered the political space in the state through incisive vision and clear-headed direction that shaped his politics and style of governance.

At the church service held at COCIN, Du, in the celebrant’s home, the two officiating priests were literally done in by sheer austerity of adjectives as they sermonized with zest and bonhomie on the leadership qualities and distinction of the person Jonah David Jang. Anglican Archbishop of Jos, Most Reverend Benjamin Kwashi, was in his elements as he fetched bountifully and readily from history to elucidate an odyssey of a man who was born to lead and work for his people. At the end he prayed to God to guide Jang to identify a successor of similar substance and hand over the reins of the state to him come 2015.
The speeches of President Goodluck Jonathan who was represented by Vice President Namadi Sambo, and the PDP national chairman, Ahmed Adamu Muazu, were predictably and understandably aphrodisiac with great implications for the party. Nevertheless, they were also complements for a man on his birthday – which also served very well as a big party event after the party’s zonal rallies in Minna and Kaduna.

The presence of certain personalities, who, no matter how they pretend were actually drawn to the event by the spirit to celebrate Jang not so much for clocking seventy but for being remarkably successful as governor, was instructive. Although they did not steal the show of the event, they added to its politico-social vibration and razzmatazz. The trios of  Senators Joshua Dariye and Ibrahim Mantu, and, of course, former deputy to Jang, Dame Pauline Tallen acknowledged Jang on the occasion as much as Jang himself savoured and relished their presence.

It was certainly not judgment day; but if somebody was not falling into line, something was definitely giving way.
The pleasantries and pleasant exchanges between the celebrant and the ‘opposition’ were a statement on the 2015 Plateau Project. Ever since the event and its refreshing encounters, there has been a whirl of talks across the state about the return of Dariye and Tallen to the PDP after a profligate wander. The prospect of their return is also a proposal that they would work together with Jang as party leader to win the state for PDP in the next general elections. Again, the result of the recent local government councils’ polls in the state, and attendant post-elections shenanigans are suggestive of new alignments and fresh offensive; and indicate quite pungently that Jang is safely and firmly in grip of the state gubernatorial divisor for 2015.

But here also is the equinox and the pressure here can be excruciating and exacting. Like a polo player, the options before Jang are of competing elegance; and the imperative of maintaining a balance of options is delicate and intricate. One, for his investment in leadership mentoring not to come to naught,a candidate has to emerge from the subsisting Redemption government. If this ideal must be maintained without fouling the politics of rotation, the character that is likely to be revealed by the prayers is the present deputy governor, Ignatius Longjan. That ticket will suffice with the present attorney general and commissioner for justice, Edward Pwajok, as deputy. It is one option that will sustain the Redemption philosophy and public service ideals into the next era.

Secondly, if the prayers envision Redemption continuity without a Longjan, the tendency is high that the convenience of geopolitics will be atrophied as the deputy governor is said to be the most likeable to Jang in that zone for his sense of accountability and lack of ambition; or else Jang will search beyond the graduating Redemption class, to pair with a Redemption graduate. Again, this option is weak and not helpful of the Redemption agenda if the number one man is not from its rungs.

This again sharpens the chances for a possible Edward Pwajok gubernatorial ticket, being, like Longjan, the most trusted commissioner in the Jang cabinet for his transparency and faith in the governor’s commitment to deliver on quality governance. A Pwajok ticket will leave Jang with the options of deputy who is also Redemption graduate, or beneficiary of geopolitical balancing from Plateau South or Central.
By and large, the pressure on Jang is that he has a few options within his government; and very little time, especially as Plateau Central has also joined the jostling for the number one job since prayers can swing the opportunity to any of the zones.