Former Plateau Governor, Senator Simon Lalong has given reasons he relinquished his position as the leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the state to his successor, Governor Caleb Mutfwang.
The senator representing Plateau South Senatorial district in the National Assembly who disclosed this in a chat with select journalists in Jos on Wednesday, said his decision was born out of his desire for the need to promote peace, unity, and stability within the party in the state.
Before the defection of Gov. Mutfwang from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to the APC in December 2025, Lalong, a former Director-General of the Tinubu Campaign Council during the 2023 general elections, was the undisputed leader of the APC in the state but with the incumbent’s defection to the ruling party, the leaders structure had to change and he automatically becomes the leader of the party in the state.
While responding to a question on why he agreed to let go of his leadership position, Lalong said the move was in line with the APC’s ideology of cohesion and collective progress.
Lalong, who also used the session to announce his decision to re-contest for a second term in the Senate shortly after collecting his nomination form, stressed that with Mutfwang’s defection to the APC, there was no reason for him to still hang on to the leadership position of the party.
“The governor indicated that he was coming back to the APC, and without any resistance, as was done in so many states, we accepted him,” the senator said.
“The PDP collapsed and governance came back to my party because I was responsible for bringing the APC to the Plateau. I was the leader and sole commander of the party, along with the likes of the late General Shagaya and others now of blessed memory. APC gave me a platform, and I became the governor of Plateau State.
“So, with the establishment of APC on the Plateau, I feel honoured to be regarded as the father of APC in the state, and I am honoured that people left their parties and came back to join me in my house.
“And it is only natural that when you see a guest, the governor, coming to join you with good intentions, you welcome him. Today, we have a very cordial relationship with the governor of the state.
“I feel honoured and dignified that Today, Plateau State is APC. Therefore, when Governor Mutfwang joined the APC, one of the first things I did to welcome him was to say, ‘I surrender the leadership to you,’ so that he could be comfortable knowing that the house he is entering has been fully handed over to him.
“And if you recall, on that day, the governor also replied and said to me, ‘Your Excellency, I am surprised that you have just surrendered this leadership to me. Do not think you are running away from me. You cannot run away from me. Both of us will run this party.’ That was his response,” Lalong stated.
He further stated that in every state, the governor naturally assumed leadership of the party and as such, he accepted the governor’s return without resistance because it was in the overall interest of the party, the state, and the country.
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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