LG boss appeals to Lalong to obey court ruling

Kingsley Chukwuka, Jos

The embattled Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) local government Chairman of Langtang North in Plateau state, who was last Friday declared as the rightful winner of the October 10, 2018 local government polls held in the state, has appealed to Governor Simon Lalong to obey the court ruling and swear him into office.

The council Chairman, Ubandoman Joshua Laven, said he has no doubt that the governor will swear him in coming from his background as a lawyer.

Our correspondent reports that the Plateau state Election Appeal Tribunal last Friday, upheld Laven and the PDP as the winner of the Langtang North council election.

Laven, the PDP chairmanship candidate had challenged the declaration of the APC’s candidate, Kparnim Nanloh-Amos by Plateau state Independent Electoral Commission (PLASIEC) as winner of the poll in the state.

Laven said that “Governor Lalong I know has respect for the decision of courts as demonstrated by him in his local government in Langtang North in 2015 on assumption of office with the swearing in of Chief Dan Dull as the duly elected chairman of Langtang North.

“If Gov. Lalong can keep his promise to the people of his local government council when he came to campaign for his governorship election that led him to victory in 2015, he would do same in his own case after the election appeal tribunal has ruled in favour of the PDP.

”Gov. Lalong as the father of the state is one governor that believes in the rule of law and due process, and that was why when the outcome of the poll in 2018 didn’t go down well with some of us, he urged everyone that disagrees with the declaration of the Plateau state Independent Electoral Commission (PLASIEC) to go before the election petition tribunal to argue their case.

“I complied and headed to the state election appeal tribunal who has now declared me as the true winner of the poll.”

Laven said the common masses of his local government area came out overwhelmingly to vote for him in the 2018 local government poll, promising that now that the court has returned his stolen mandate, he will do everything humanly possible to deliver dividends of democracy to the people of his local government.

He added that despite all odds, the people of his local council should continue to put their hopes on the judiciary as the hope of the common man.