As someone who had never practiced politics in the past and had been in the military all his life, people did not expect that Governor Jonah Jang to be politically savvy to lead a complicated state like Plateau. They expected him to be naïve, slow and make many political mistakes which may ultimately lead to the demise of his political career. So far, he has proven everyone wrong, his political life has continue to blossom, and he currently stands as the “undisputed champion” of Plateau politics. Having found the rare balance between being military minded in his execution of policies, but equally being strategic/mild tempered and spiritual when it comes to taking political decisions.

As someone who had never practiced politics, and had been in the military all his life, people did not consider Jonah Jang politically savvy enough to govern a complicated state like Plateau. They expected him to be naïve, dupable and to make silly political mistakes which may ultimately lead to the demise of his political career. So far, he has proven everyone wrong, his political life has continued to blossom, and he stands today as the “undisputed champion” of Plateau politics. Having found the rare balance between being military minded in his execution of policies, but equally strategic/mild tempered and spiritual when it comes to taking political decisions.

Jang has never been afraid of engaging in battles, especially ideological and political ones. At the moment, he appears to be fighting several political battles on many fronts –and appears to be winning too. On one front, he is enmeshed in a political battle with the House of Assembly, over allegations of financial impropriety and on the other front appears to be in a head-to-head battle of wits with the PDP party chairman, Dr. Haruna Dabin over the 2015 gubernatorial succession plan.

Dr. Dabin, a former official of the PDP headquarters in Abuja had for a long time nursed the ambition for succeeding Governor Jonah Jang. He discussed his ambition with several individuals within and outside the state, but did not have the confidence to discuss his ambition with the governor. Jang on the other hand, had obviously heard about this ambition and expected the PDP chairman to own up and discuss the idea, but it never happened. However, approximately 1 month ago, after Jang returned from his overseas trip, the PDP chairman finally mustered courage to meet him and tell him about his intention –having already had a traditional ruler from Pankshin facilitate the meeting.

After listening to the Chairman’s intention, Jang wished him well with his ambition and promised that the party would provide a level playing ground for everyone. However, as Dabin prepared to leave, Jang was said to have reminded him about the need to resign from position of Party Chairman, as “he cannot be the referee in his own contest”. Dabin left the meeting, interpreting that reminder about the need to resign, to mean the worst. He therefore resolved not to resign, but to continue in his capacity as PDP Chairman, whilst still continuing with his ambition. And that was how the battle line was drawn between the PDP state chairman and the  governor.

Dabin’s declaration to contest the state Governorship elections whilst still remaining chairman was however not the only reason why Governor Jang was said to have become perturbed by him. It was reliably gathered, that the Governor became uncomfortable with Dabin, because of suspicions that he was fraternising with old members who had left the PDP and were not in good term with the Governor. His suspicions were confirmed when he (Jang) led Plateau PDP members to visit the new National Chairman of the PDP, Alh. Adamu Mua’zu and was shocked to see a number of Abuja based Plateau politicians who were opposed to him, at the PDP secretariat. The Governor was said to have wondered how these individuals were invited to the occasion –a situation said to have been ascribed to Dabin.

So following Dabin’s insistence not to resign, the entire party machinery was said to have been mobilised to move against him. And so, as a first step, the State Working Committee were commissioned to asked Dabin to resign his position as State Chairman to pursue his gubernatorial ambition. ViewPointNigeria gathered that 4 members of the SWC had in the said meeting held at the State Party Secretariat, walked out on Dabin. The members of the SWC were said to be infuriated over his insistence to preside over the meeting. As it stands, associates of Dabin are already throwing bombshells, claiming that his travail are the handiwork of party members who are hatching a plot to allow somebody from the Northern Senatorial Zone to emerge as party flagbearer.

Last week an emergency meeting of the State Executive Committee, SEC of the party was convened by stakeholders not loyal to Dabin, with the aim of alienating and making him (Dabin) irrelevant. And it is reported that approx. 96 per cent of statutory members of the SEC including the Deputy Governor, Mr. Ignatius Longjan, the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Titus Alams, Principal officers of the House, National Assembly members, Local Government Council Chairmen, Local government Party Chairmen among others were said to have honoured the SEC meeting last Monday, despite counter text messages sent by the Dabin loyalist to other members that they should boycott the meeting. At the end of the meeting, a communiqué drafted by a five man team was issued, heralding the end of the Dabin leadership era.

However, before the meeting, mutual friends of Dabin and Jang had pressured the embattled chairman to throw in the towel and work with Jang, but he apparently rebuffed the entreaties as he fought back disclaiming the SEC meeting as illegal. It was reliably gathered that he had sympathy from two members of his executive, but it was to no avail. Dabin apparently sensing the determination of the state secretary, Saleh Pam to join the forces against him, had in a statement prior to last Monday’s meeting accused Pam of trying to create disunity in the party.

Meanwhile, Dabin also summoned a meeting of the SWC of the party to hold at the secretariat at about the same time as the SEC meeting was about to take off at the Presidential Lodge. His meeting was largely boycotted. And in a communiqué issued at the end of the SEC meeting on Monday, 16th June and read by Barr. Caleb Mutfwang, Chairman, Mangu Local Government Area who represented elected council chairmen, the Deputy Chairman of the party, Raymond Dabo was mandated to take over the affairs of the Party as Acting State Chairman pending the outcome investigations by the Party’s Disciplinary Committee.

Muftwang in the communiqué said, “in view of the deliberate refusal by Party Chairman, Dr. Haruna Dabin to call meetings of the various organs of the Party for unduly long periods and the failure to render financial accounts to the Party and instigating some members of the Party to institute a lawsuit against the Party, the State Executive Committee is constrained to suspend the Chairman pending the outcome of investigations by the Party’s Disciplinary Committee within two weeks”.

He added, “the Party assured of a level playing ground for those aspiring for political offices in 2015 but urged people holding post which is likely to compromise the impartiality of electoral process to resign their positions”.

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Haruna Dabin: How political naivety and power-play led to his removal