Plateau: Mutfwang’s defection’ll make lobbying for federal positions,

From Jude Owuamanam, Jos

Senator Diket Plang represents Plateau Central in the Red Chambers. He is chairman of the Senate Committee on Employment, Labour and Productivity, as well as the vice chairman, Committee on Federal Character. In this interview, he noted that with Governor Caleb Mutfwang’s defection to APC, Plateau is positioned to play politics at the centre.

Excerpts:

Governor of Plateau State, Caleb Mutfwang, has just defected to the APC. Do you see this development as a good thing for Plateau?

It is an excellent move for Plateau. As a member of the National Assembly, I need to have a governor who is on the same page with me. I need to have a party on the same page, and I also need to have a president on the same page. Lobbying at the national level has different faces. There are times you need your governor to stand by you. For instance, when I wanted the University of Mines, Mining and Geosciences, I needed a governor. I needed everybody in the party shouting for it. I want to assure you that when you have a governor and you are in the ruling party, and you also have a president, lobbying becomes cheaper for members of the legislative arm. For me, if at any time we have a governor in the same party with me, my ability to lobby will be much better. As a people, we are not really ideological in terms of party. It is more about interest. If the interest of the governor and the interest of the ruling party collide in the same place, it will be beneficial to all of us. Lastly, we are all brothers in this state. We are all Plateau people. It is more about Plateau and what Plateau will benefit. If the coming of the governor will be an added advantage for us to pursue more for Plateau, then it is an excellent move. We will accept it, work on it, support each other and ensure the party gives its best. Now we have a governor in APC, a national chairman in APC, a president in APC, and senators like me in APC. We should be able to give the best to the state. I think it is advantageous.

You have shared your opinion on the governor’s movement, but you were elected on the platform of the APC. Within the same APC, we have seen groups come out to reject the governor’s coming into your party. What is your message to them?

At periods of political struggle, people act to protect their interests. Those who feel otherwise are not necessarily wrong. During elections, everyone does their best to express themselves. When that does not succeed and a decision is taken, we must work together. As a party, we move as a group. He was in PDP, we are in APC, but now we must work for the soul of APC. Anyone who said yes or no had the opportunity to express themselves. But once the party at the national level and the ruling government has accepted him, we now have a common denominator to work together. Some people said no because of interest, some said yes because of interest, but at the end of the day, the final outcome is Plateau interest. We must accept ourselves, shake hands and work together. Wherever you are coming from, whichever party, you are representing the people of Plateau. Plateau people are in all parties. This is the time to work together. Forgiveness should be entertained. Even when we campaign and say things against each other, once we are together, we laugh and work for a better tomorrow. I believe there is maturity in APC, maturity in the governor and maturity among all stakeholders. We must collapse our interests in one place and work towards the progress of this country. For those of us at the top, the cooperation of those below is our strength. If all of us are on the same page, it is a strength to APC, a strength to the governor, and a strength to the state. I believe it is a wonderful moment. There should be forgiveness.

Just to extrapolate on the last question. At the national level, there are still many questions. Some people say APC is becoming popular because of the interest of Mr. President, not necessarily because of performance. Even in the constituencies you represent, there are issues with hunger and hardship. Party interest aside, why do you think that in 2027 the people will vote APC at the national and state levels, irrespective of the defections we are seeing?

There is one thing that goes beyond poverty that I want you to look at. The president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is one singular president, holistic in nature. In the past, the country was run mainly from a welfare point of view. This time, I see a president running the country from both economic and humanitarian perspectives. I also see inclusivity, involving smaller and bigger tribes. For every citizen, recognition matters. This is the first time that a small tribe in this country will produce a national chairman through the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This is also the first time someone from Southern Kaduna became Chief of Staff, retired, and later became Minister of Defence. The inclusivity of Mr. President gives hope and trust to Nigerians. You know, the issue of Nigeria has always been about tribe and religion. This is the only president whose wife is a reverend. She goes to her church, he goes to his mosque. He has only one wife, and he has supported her political journey, where she served as a senator three times and carried out her responsibilities. This president symbolises unity for this nation. For me, the character of Bola Ahmed Tinubu is enough to give me comfort that he can be trusted as an inclusive president. It goes beyond someone who is not inclusive but gives you what you want. They say it is better to be thin and free than to be fat in prison. Nigerians may be going through hardship, but they are free, and psychologically, people prefer recognition and inclusion. This president is also trying to build the economy of the country. In most times past, we had administrations that focused mainly on poverty alleviation without building the economy. For me, this president is holistic. He upgrades the service to the country, both financially and in terms of inclusivity of citizens. I want to assure you, I know there is God, and God reveals Himself through men. By all indications, God Almighty will return Bola Ahmed Tinubu as president in 2027, not by rigging, but consciously by Nigerians. I believe so. On whether ADC has the capacity to pose a threat, you see the fragmentation of the opposition make them a no threat. PDP is fragmented. Some are in ADC, some have quickly joined APC, others are still moving around. The strength of the opposition is at its lowest level. They may work hard to have two or three governors, but the presidency is a done deal, consciously by Nigerians.

Nigerians believe that the performance of the Senate last year was, to an extent, below average. How would you describe the performance, considering the bills and motions passed? Secondly, what is your political journey going to look like towards 2027 and beyond?

I started as a councillor to a local government chairman, then a personal assistant, then a personal assistant to a governor. From there, I became Commissioner for Science and Technology and adviser to Governor Jang. Before the House of Assembly, President Obasanjo appointed me as poverty alleviation coordinator under the presidency in charge of Plateau State. I later served as adviser to Governor Lalong, then I went to the House of Assembly, and from there to the senate. The journey is continuous. Tomorrow is in the hands of God. My little two years in the senate as a first timer, if given another opportunity, it will be said that there was a senator at the National Assembly. God gave me the opportunity in 2023. My prayer is to return in 2027, if He does not tarry and if it is His will, for the betterment of my constituents. My capacity in the legislative arm has grown much more than many may think. If I return as a ranking member, you will know there is a senator, Senator Diket Plang. It is left for the people to choose wisely and allow those they believe can deliver results. On the performance of the senate, the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria clearly outlines the functions of the three arms of government. You have the judiciary, the legislature and the executive, separated by a thin line for productivity and results. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu came in at a very tough period, with difficult economic decisions such as the removal of fuel subsidy, tax reforms, and other fundamental policies. These include the creation of Development Commissions across all geopolitical zones, not just the South-South or North-East, but every region having its own Development Commission. This allows funds from the Federation to be allocated to all six regions for their peculiar development needs. These are tough decisions, and the possibility of achieving them depends on the ability of the senate to pass the bills, process them into law, and secure presidential assent. I want you to look at the vision of Mr. President and the difficulties involved. Also, consider the number of bills passed by the senate. At the moment, between first and second readings alone, we have almost one thousand bills. I cannot say exactly how many bills have been assented to, or how many have passed third reading, or how many are still at second or first reading. But in totality, we have about 970 bills that are either close to becoming law or are at different stages of the legislative process. This is hard work. Through the senate, we have established many institutions that will provide employment for Nigerians and bring productivity to the country. The effect of this may not be something you can measure with your eyes, but I assure you that it has touched Nigerians in many ways. The senate is mature. The senate understands the journey. The senate cooperates with the executive for the sake of Nigerians, because if the senate and the executive are fighting, the impact is on the people. Where we believe policies will have positive impact on the people we represent, we support them. Where we feel it is not possible, we do not. You are aware that we refused to screen some ministers and rejected the screening of some appointees at the national level. We did that because we acted in the interest of Nigerians, not just the interest of those elected, appointed, or in high positions. We always consider the impact of poliacies on the people who elected us. On the issue of the 2025 budget, we came in June 2023, and by then a budget had already been passed. By June 2023, the implementation level of that budget was below 30 percent. The senate therefore extended the lifespan of the 2023 budget into 2024, and the 2024 budget was also extended into 2025. For every budget, you budget based on expected income. In this case, we were running about three budgets on one income. Mr President stated that in 2025, we were able to generate more than we expected, but we were still unable to execute all the projects in the 2025 budget. This is because the money generated in 2025 was used to take care of the 2023, 2024 and 2025 budgets. The extension of the budgets was not necessarily with new money, but to fit into the income that would come. So the source of funding for the 2023, 2024 and 2025 budgets was largely the revenue generated in 2025. There is no way one income can fully take care of three budgets.

In the wisdom of Mr. President, he said that by March, anything relating to 2024 and part of 2025 should be concluded. At the moment, the government is spending about 30 percent of capital projects in 2025, and that will end in March. The remaining capital projects will be rolled into the 2026 budget. What we are doing is to repeal and re-enact the 2025 Appropriation Act, allow about 70 percent of it to run into 2026, and conclude the remaining aspects by March. That way, all income going forward will be directed towards the 2026 budget. Nigeria was functioning. Salaries were paid. Some capital projects were executed, most of which were from the 2023 and 2024 budgets. Everything was orderly.

With the cacophony of voices for and against Mutfwang’s defection, do you think APC can escape any implosion in Plateau State?

I don’t foresee that. On the issue of the governor’s defection and party security, I want to assure you that there is a time for brothers to sit together, talk, and forgive each other for words used when we were not together. I believe there is maturity in the governor’s leadership, maturity in the leadership of the party and the APC national chairman. We are all brothers. Issues will be settled, and we will be on the same page. During campaigns, people say things against each other. Forgiveness is necessary. What may look difficult to the eye now will turn into a harmonious journey within APC. It will be well with Plateau, and the leaders of Plateau will work together for the progress of the state.