Unlike a few states of the federation where the gubernatorial race has commenced in earnest, the same cannot be said of Plateau. A state of quandary dis-quiet pervades the Plateau space with arguments and counter arguments of who, where, when and what zone should present contending candidates.

Amidst the debacle of who is contending and who is pretending, is Mr. Ignatius Longjan, the present Deputy Governor of the state. A man who even though close to the corridors of power, has not signified or demonstrated any interest in wanting to occupy the position. A trained diplomat and a master of his craft, he has worked in a variety of international/high profile capacities, in places like the Russia and the US. Also having entered politics shortly after his retirement in 2000, and progressed through the ranks from a position within the state PDP, to the Governor’s chief of staff and subsequently the deputy Governor, ViewPointNigeria considers whether he would be a good candidate for Jonah Jang to hand over to.

Unlike a few states of the federation where the gubernatorial race has commenced in earnest, the same cannot be said of Plateau. A state of quandary dis-quiet pervades the Plateau space with arguments and counter arguments of who, where, when and what zone should present contending candidates.

Amidst the debacle of who is contending and who is pretending are a plethora of candidates who have either declared interest or remained indifferent altogether, hoping to be the Governor’s “chosen or anointed ones”.

However, one particular candidate who catches our imagination is Mr. Ignatius Longjan, the present Deputy Governor of the state. A man who even though close to the corridors of power, has not signified or demonstrated any interest in wanting to occupy the position. A trained diplomat and a master of his craft, he has worked in a variety of international/high profile capacities, in places like the Russia and the US. Also, having entered politics shortly after his retirement in 2000, and progressed through the ranks from a position within the state PDP, to the Governor’s chief of staff and subsequently the deputy Governor, ViewPointNigeria considers whether he would be a good candidate for the incumbent to hand over to.

Firstly, the last time a deputy governor worked with the present Governor, the partnership ended in tatters, as the occupant ambitiously attempted to undermine her boss, when she sureptiously received funding from several Northern Governors to unseat her boss -a behaviour many considered grossly insurbordinate, making her lose the support of many and was therefore shown the way out. 

The relationship between Longjan and Jonah Jang has been near-perfect -or at least from outside, it appears to be. This sort of loyalty is not really uncommon in Nigerian politics, given that the main office occupant is usually considered the “alpha-male”or “Oga kwata kwata” and everyone else including his deputy, a subject. But contrast this with the erstwhile deputy Governor, and this fellow certainly presents a food-for-thought for all. By working so asidiously with his boss, he demonstrates that he posses’ great Wisdom beyond the common, rare Social Intelligence to work seamlessly with his boss without rancour, Trust and Integrity to give his all in support of the overall good of the state, and phenomenal Team-Working capability to support the achievement of the laudable strides that we ascribe to the Jang administration. 

Loyalty though is not everything. And some times in the Nigerian setting it may be a massive negative for leadership, because the true potential of the loyaltee (if there is such a word) may not come out, if they are simply “all-agreeable” with their boss. But if the professional credentials of Longjan within several chanceries in US and Russia are considered, a picture of a person who has held positions of authority/leadership begins to emerge. These credentials have been used several times in the Plateau space in times of civil disturbances or conflict. When ViewPointNigeria attempted to get vivid examples of where such skills have been applied, several sources in Jos point to situations where near-impossible disagreements which raged on for months between civil societies were settled in a matter of hours. Such an ability to get individuals to agree is undoubtedly vital for the leadership -especially of a conflict ridden state like Plateau. 

When ViewPointNigeria quized individuals in Jos about the capacity of Longjan to tackle the raging conflicts, bomb attacks and guerilla attacks in Jos -several individuals said he may be too soft spoken, calm and easy-going to deal with such dire events but quickly added that this may be a redherring because he may not necessary have the tough nature and military background like the incumbent, but is gifted with immence wisdom to deal with such situations effectively.

Ignatius Longjan is a technocrat who has served in several high profile capacities both internationally, politically and within his community, as such the experience he brings to the table cannot be over emphasized. Plateau state needs someone who is both a skilled tactician, cerebral (i.e., a thinker) and diplomatic. If a credible candidate is being procured from the southern zone, he’d certainly be a worthy choice. This administration can be sure that he can govern with integrity and trust as he has consistently done in the last three and a half years as deputy Governor.

There is no doubt that the “Silence in the Plateau space is too LOUD” -thus ViewPointNigeria shall continue to profile credible individuals until, the unconfortable silence is broken.

#theSilenceInPlateauIsTooLoud

count | 18

2015: The “Silence in Plateau is too Loud” -Why not Longjan