By Simon Luka

Between January 10, 2010 and January 15, 2010, for the first time in my life, I saw how guns, machetes, axes and other weapons were used flagrantly, blatantly, glaringly and freely in various streets of Jos, the Plateau state capital in the name of ethnic, religious, tribal and clannish agitations. I was then observing my mandatory one year National Youth Service Corp (NYSC) in Bauchi and I only came to spend the weekend in Jos with my uncle.

I was on my way back to Bauchi when I became trapped in the middle of the crisis. From the Good Samaritan whose house served as a fortress, a place of safety and sanctuary where we had gone to hide, I saw corpses, dead bodies, carcass of human beings, injured, disfigured, wounded, impaired and decimated people, affected in the name of the crisis. This August, I was in Jos again, this time around, for the book launch of a childhood friend somewhere in Ray Field; I went round the length and breadth of the city and the atmosphere in Jos this time was serene, the whole town was busy with business activities and residents of the state were at peace with each other.

My journalistic instinct got the better of me and I became curious, inquisitive and interested in knowing why Armored Personnel Carriers (APCS) that were common sights on the streets of Jos have been replaced with Taxis and “KEKE NAPEPS” as people are transported from place to place. The answer I got was astonishing, amazing and encouraging; the answers I got from people will form the basis for the subsequent paragraphs. The Governor Simon Bako Lalong administration through an administration embedded with justice, equity, fair play, good governance and inclusiveness has replaced gun shots with music, bomb blasts have been replaced with carnival music while citizens now preach love, togetherness, tranquility and peace having studied the body language of the governor.

For the first time in the history of the middle belt region, A governor was nicknamed with the sobriquet “Alert Governor” because of his regular payments of emoluments to civil servants. This alone has reinflated the economy of the state as residents queue daily of ATMS across the city centres and the business environment is boisterous. A manifestation of the moniker of the governor as a peace protagonist was the Jos Carnival where Governor Lalong alongside his beautiful wife walked eight kilometers to the carnival. No wonder, the amiable Governor was recently awarded by Business Daily Newspaper as one of the Best Governors in Nigeria and another award as best Governor in Dorchester, London by “The Nigerian” a London based publication of the Nigerian News Portal. The selection for the award I was told was sampled from an opinion poll of one million respondents and Governor Lalong was recognized as Best Governor for his antecedents in defence of democracy, superlative peace building initiatives in Nigeria and his transparent use of resources for sustainable development and human capital investment in Plateau state. I was marveled to hear all these about a single leader.

Jos has regained its name as Home of Peace and Tourism with the Association of Nationals Accountants of Nigeria ANAN recently hosting their weeklong conference in the state and the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) following suit afterwards. Sokoto state recently held a retreat in Jos with the Governor Aminu Tambuwal and the most revered Sultan (Sultan Sa’adAbubakar) leading commissioners, board members and other to Jos city for a one week retreat. This can only happen in an atmosphere embedded with peace as created by the peace loving Governor. In area of Sports and Youths Development, the encouragement, inspiration and motivation the governor is providing in this area has uplifted Plateau United to just six points from claiming the league as the best football team in Nigeria.

This is an unprecedented feat. In the area of education, Lalong is indeed showing he is a maverick in this sector. the Plateau State University Bokkos that was abandoned by previous administration has been revived and rejuvenated with most of its courses accredited and the institution holding its first ever convocation. To boost the economy of the state, I was informed of the governments’ successful hosting of a trade fair after ten years suspension by the former administration due to civil unrest ,the Direct Data Capture exercise to eradicate ghost workers and also the physical verification of staff introduced to tackle the menace of ghost workers . This, to me is considered enough reason for the laudatory, applause, commendation, plaudits and approbation of the “Alert Governor” Simon Bako Lalong. Hope other Governors will borrow a leaf from the silent achiever from Plateau State.

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Governor Lalong an epitome of development in Plateau state