Dati in a statement in Jos titled ” Law School Campus: Lalong Brings Home the Bacon” made available to Newsmen including Sunday Independent, said this singular effort of the Plateau Governor and several others he has done had brought torrents of comments extolling the deft and strategic manoeuvres of the peace-loving governor of Plateau State, Rt. Hon. Simon Bako Lalong.
According to Dati, a one time Commissioner for Information on the Plateau, the showers of encomiums on Lalong have been deafening and as critics and naysayers who have made it their stock in trade to question every action of Governor Lalong especially his loyalty to the Federal Government, are hiding their faces in shame.
” This latest achievement has clearly overwhelmed them,” Dati stressed.
He added that the inclusion of Plateau State as one of the beneficiary states of the Federal Government’s expansion of legal education in Nigeria is not mere happenstance but a consequence of the vision and pragmatism of the Governor, a lawyer and longest-serving Speaker of the Plateau State House of Assembly.
” For good reasons, Gov Lalong from the inception of his government made education one of the cardinal pillars of his administration,
Armed with Nelson Mandela’s dictum that “Education is the most powerful weapon to change the world,” Governor Lalong’s intervention in the education sector has not only been sustained but has become one of the most impactful in Nigeria.
Dati noted that on the assumption of office, Governor Lalong reopened the Plateau State University, (PLASU) which was shut down by his predecessor and today, this citadel has successfully got 15 out of the 16 courses it offers, fully accredited while graduating thousands of students over the years.
“Appreciative of the role of education as the first step towards acquiring knowledge, Gov Lalong devoted huge resources into the construction and renovation of thousands of primary school blocks and for the recruitment and training of teachers to educate pupils’.
Dati further stressed that the administration’s flagship project – the Lalong legacy project- consists of 12 primary and secondary schools of the world-class standard spread across the three geopolitical zones in the state, all at advanced stages of completion, adding that to create opportunities for further education, the Governor also facilitated the establishment of The Federal Polytechnic, Nyak, Shendam and The Federal University of Education, Pankshin in Plateau State.
Not done with that, Governor Lalong he said, saw to the sustenance of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) Training School and the NDLEA Academy in Plateau State.
Added to that, the Governor has encouraged private sector investment in education through several policies and programmes including the establishment of a one-stop-shop and the 50 percent waiver for land titles and documentation, in the Plateau State Ministry of Lands and Survey where I oversee.
“Little wonder, two private universities, Karlkum University Vom and ANAN University, Kwal found the necessary synergy to rev up to life and open its campus for learning.”
The Switch Foundation, an initiative of the wife of the Governor, Mrs. Regina Lalong has equally tapped into the vision with the promotion of girl-child education through the provision of computers and other learning materials that will encourage scholarship in the state.
The establishment of a campus of the Nigeria Law School in Plateau State, Dati stressed will no doubt add zest to the growing academic environment in the state and further instill in the youths the virtues of scholarship and good character.
This is not to talk of other benefits like employment opportunities and boosting of the tourism potential of the state.
According to him, there’s no doubt that the Lalong administration is clear on its set goals for the betterment of the people of Plateau State using solid education as the foundation.
He added that the most striking is the assurance that the Governor knows how to go about bringing goodies to the state.
That the Federal Government which in the past has had cause to relocate key strategic institutions in Plateau State to other places has now considered Jos as a first choice for its expansion of legal education in Nigeria, speaks volumes about the confidence Plateau has earned through its Governor.
“As the Americans would say, Lalong is a leader who knows how to bring home the bacon’ saying
Lalong is working and to God be the glory.
