The North Central All Progressives Congress, APC, Forum has called on the President-elect, Bola Tinubu, to pick the Director-General of his Presidential Campaign Council, Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State as the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF).The Forum said Governor Lalong, who is also the Chairman of the Northern Governors Forum, has done a lot for the APC, the emergence of Tinubu in the presidential election, the Northern region and the nation at large.

Speaking on behalf of the forum in Jos, the Plateau State capital, the Chairman of the Forum, Saleh Mandung Zazzaga, made the call while speaking with journalists.He said due to Lalong’s active support for Tinubu, many people in the North Central region and his home state of Plateau have been casting aspersions on him and labelling him with all manners of names, but he stood his ground owning to his strong faith in the ability of the Tinubu/Shettima ticket.He said, “Lalong has demonstrated that peace and unity, which is the bedrock of development, is achievable, as he has been able to restore peace in Plateau State by taking the state out of the dark days of ethnoreligious violence.”

Zazzaga recalled that the North Central APC Forum had initially canvassed for the emergence of the next President from the North Central zone, and they routed for Lalong, but it didn’t work out, and then later canvassed for him to be selected as the running mate to Tinubu, but yet it never worked out.“Despite all that, Lalong did not despair or got annoyed, but kept supporting the party to succeed, and also continued doing so until he was appointed as the Director General of the APC presidential campaign council.

“As a loyal party man like Lalong who has been tested and trusted deserves to serve in a strategic capacity like the position of the SGF so that upon the swearing in of Boka Tinubu and the taking off of the administration, the government begin to function maximally without delay as there is much work to be done”, he maintained.Zazzaga urged the President-elect to be focused in his decision-making and not to allow sycophants and those who did not work for his victory to distract him, saying he is assured that Tinubu will do well following his track record as then Lagos State Governor and his political sagacity over the years.

The Chairman also called on all APC supporters to come out en mass across the country and vote for all APC governorship, and House of Assembly candidates across the country this Saturday, as the party still remains the party to beat and progressive in its policies.He urged the youths to be law abiding during and after the election and ensure that they conduct themselves in a peaceful way so that the election will be violence-free and credible.