Lalong to APC: Stop favouring Abuja politicians

Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau state has advised the leadership of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) against giving appointments to ‘Abuja politicians’ who have no relevance at state level.

He disclosed this on Thursday during a consultative meeting the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party had with 2019 election governorship candidates, state chairmen and state secretaries at its national secretariat in Abuja.

Lalong voiced happiness that Comrade Oshiomhole had bounced back after the harassment faced during post-primary period.

“We all saw the challenges and how the chairman was harassed and messed up and down by some of us from morning till evening. But it is good that the chairman has bounced back and beginning to shine again a little.

“The most important thing is the realisation that politics is local. Our local environment is very important. When we went in for the primaries, almost every state had their problems.

“We watched to see how many will solve their problems. Like the Governor of Niger, one thing or the other to assuage the aggrieved ones. That is what we are doing as well but we should not restrict it to our state alone but to our neighbouring states. We have to move in to the states next to us that have problem as well.

“On the issue of national, many of us also waited for the national because I remember that as chairman, Caucus, Mr President will say that our campaign for president and vice president is going to be borne by the states and it is the state that will vote for the president, not at Abuja. When it comes to election, people should learn to return to their states.

“We have instances which people complained about that people are not going back to the state but remain in Abuja claiming that they belong to support group and at the end of the election, by the time you start fielding people for appointments, the local one will not be considered because they don’t have anybody in Abuja.

“It is only those who know Abuja that will be appointed. Somebody may be champion in Abuja but without base at the grassroots. The election will not be in Abuja. In some places, governors and candidates will labour up and down but by the end of the day, they will not have the opportunity to present those who helped them in achieving the victory.

“This thing must be handled with emphasis because we have already started to see people raising structures. I have told them if you raise any structure in Abuja that is for Abuja; but if you raise the structure, come back home and identify the structure with the grassroots. Some of them have never gone to their wards in the past two years and they don’t attend meetings at the ward level. What they are doing in Abuja is nothing other than to advance themselves,” Lalong said.