Political appointments in Plateau are democratised state Apc chairman

Amidst complain of neglect and lack of political patronage by some stalwarts of All Progressive Congress in Plateau State, the State Party chairman, Hon. Latep Dabang has dismissed the accusations saying APC led government in the state has democratise the appointments by allowing people at the grass root to present whoever they want for appointments.

Speaking with Nigerian Tribune in Jos, the state party chairman said since inception of Governor Simon Lalong administration, appointments have always being thrown back to the people adding the allegations were baseless and ploy to cause disaffections within the party.

Said he: “Appointments have always been thrown back to the people at the local governments level. Commissioners are nominated from their local government areas for governor approval after a thorough screening. If some members of the party did not get the nod of their constituency, how did that become the problem of the party and governor?

“It is not everybody that worked for the party that would get political appointments. When you look at the number of commissioners and other political appointments, that should tell our people that appointment cannot go round everybody, they should bear with the government” he said.

Hon. Dabang who said the party is waxing stronger stated that people across the seventeen local government areas of the state especially strong members of People Democratic Party are decamping to APC on a weekly basis adding that another set would soon be received before the year runs out.

He however denied the allegation by the People Democratic Party that APC on the Plateau is conniving with the state government to frustrate local government election adding that the wish and desire of APC in the state was that the council poll be conducted in earnest.

“The allegation is baseless, we are not running away from local government election. In fact APC wants the council poll on time to permanently silence the PDP and compound its woos in the state. But the government is simply being careful and don’t want to put the cart before the horse.

“I will never support any anti-democratic government at the local government level because the constitution did not say so. During the last administration it was done with impunity but when we came in, we tried to correct the impunity by doing the right thing. But with the state of things presently, the election will soon be conducted “he said.

To check anomaly bedeviling local government polls in Nigeria, the State Chairman of APC wants the National Assembly to work towards withholding allocation to local government that did not democratic government adding that such council should not be given subvention.