By Our Reporter
Governor of Plateau State and Director-General of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Presidential Campaign Organization, Simon Lalong, has said that as ardent Catholic, the Pope has not told him that accepting to lead the Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket was wrong.
He was reacting to a staged protest by a group, he described as faceless asking him to reject the appointment as Director General of the Tinubu/Shettima campaign organisation.
A group under the aegis of Concern Christians on the Plateau (CCP), had staged a rally in Abuja, where they called on Lalong, to reject the offer to serve as the director general of APC presidential campaign council, threatening that the Plateau Christians will not support him in ‘the suspicious engagement or assignment.’
The group had said it was completely out of place for the same APC that rejected Lalong to be the Vice-Presidential candidate allegedly based on incompetence, to turn and appoint him as campaign DG in order to seek for votes for the party.
But the governor urged Nigerians to grow up from ethnic or religious sentiments, noting that he has already accepted the job and there was nothing anybody can do to dissuade him from performing his responsibilities.
According to Lalong, who met with President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday, to thank him for approving the University of Jos as a national cancer centre, said being an ardent member of the Catholic faith, even the Pope is not angry with his decision to accept the job.
He denied the allegation that he lobbied to become the running mate of the APC presidential candidate, in the 2023 elections, Bola Tinubu.
According to him, as a born, baptized and confirmed Catholic, who has the highest award from the papacy, Knight of Saint Gregory the Great, the Pope has not told him that it was wrong for him to be the DG of the Muslim-Muslim presidential campaign team.
He told State House Correspondents that the Plateau State Chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) came to the Yakubu Gowon Airport, Jos to welcome him after his appointment as the APC presidential campaign DG.
Lalong explained that the appointment was strictly a party affair and has nothing to do with religion.
As for the purpose of his visit, he said that he was at the Presidential Villa to thank the President for approving numerous infrastructural projects and for granting presidential pardon to the former governor of the state, Senator Joshua Dariye as well of a former governor of Taraba State, Rev. Jolly Nyame that were convicted for corruption.
