GOVERNOR Jonah Jang of Plateau State is known for his penchant for aesthetic, pertaining to developmental project. The various projects executed by his administration in the past four years are testimonies to this. The common saying among the people of the state, especially among his protagonists, is that you can fault Governor Jang in other aspect of administration but certainly not on execution of projects that have value and appeal, some have dubbed him as a governor with high taste.Shortly after his swearing-in in 2007 for the first term in office, he minced no word in condemning the state of the Ray Field Government House using various parameters to justify why the state needed a befitting Government House. His statement then attracted a barrage of condemnations, especially from his opponents who perceived the step as a wasteful venture and another subterranean move of siphoning the state resources.Apart from the land earmarked for the construction of the new Government House at little Ray Field during the first term, nothing was heard about the project again, giving an impression that the governor had caved in to the criticism of his political opponents. But some of the steps taken during his first term in office actually depicted his seriousness towards the construction of another government house.During his first tenure, the governor built another deputy governor office christened ' Jitshe Government Lodge' which he now uses as residential and offices while the Ray Field Government House was converted to Presidential Lodge and renovated to suit the purpose.To match words with action, the state government last week eventually signed a N4.5 billion contract with Eagle Construction Company to construct the new Government House within the next 36 months. The signing of the contract was followed by a fusillade of comments, while some people saw it as good omen, others perceived it as a misplaced priority.Explaining the rationale behind the idea of a new government house, the Secretary to the State Government, Professor Shedrack Best, said it became pertinent for the government to have a structure that would respond to the challenges of the moment because Plateau State never had a proper government house since its creation.Professor Best pointed out that the present government house was converted from a presidential lodge it was initially meant to be; adding that because of the conversion, it did not meet the requir-ements of modern governance and did not befit the state.He added that the Government Lodge at Tudun Wada built for the deputy governor which is now a makeshift government house is also not a proper government house because it was simply a lodge 'converted to a temporary Government House to temporarily meet the exigency of go-ver-nance.The project, he explained further was also in consonance with the 10 point agenda of the government in strengthening the institution and the quality of governance; saying that it was based on this that government was convinced that it needed a modern and befitting government house.Prof. Best further disclosed that many Plateau citizens would have been looking forward to it over the years due to the preliminary activities that had been going on, on the site since the land was acquired over the years and no work was done.While stressing that even though the government would not find the construction an easy task, he said he was confident that at the end of the day, the project would be a pride of Plateau people was it would be second to none in the country.The SSG explained that the new government house would house governor's office and residence as well as the office of the wife of the governor, a banquet hall, auditorium, a clinic and other offices within the complex; explaining that the outside work which would include the road and landscaping would be handled by another company, PW Construction Company.Despite government position that the state needs a befitting government house, the opposition in the state perceives it as a misplaced priority and wants the government to shelve the idea and pursue projects that would galvanize and accelerate development of Plateau State.Reacting to the signing of N4.5billion contract for a new government house, the state chairman of the Conference of Political Parties (CNPP) Alhaji Mohammed Kanam, said there were sectors that were begging for attention in the state, saying that going ahead to build another government house that had no bearing on the lives of the people was a misnomer.He said:' There are sectors begging for attention in the state; already the state has two government houses that are befitting enough. With the economic situation in the state and with virtually all the sectors begging for attention, it is improper to invest N4.5billion on a new government house when there are sectors like education, health and the rest in deplorable state.'The state chairman of Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Chief Amos Gizo, said such colossal amount of money would have been better deplored to other areas instead of providing a comfort zone in the name of government house for those in government, saying that the project would certainly not bring either revenue or development to the state adding that it was a project that would further worsen the state of other sectors.Chief Gizo condemned the claim in government circle that Plateau State had never had a government house since its creation; he said the Government House Ray Field and Jitshe Government Lodge now being used as makeshift Government House ranked among the best in the northern part of the country adding that what the state government simply needed was to upgrade that of Ray Field if necessary.'In the midst of under development, how will a government be talking of a new government house worth N4.5 billion, will the house generate revenue or boost the economy of the state or create employment for the teeming youth roaming about the streets' Certainly no, it is nothing but a misplaced priority,' he said.However, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media, Honourable Ayuba Pam, said those castigating the government over the signed contract for a new government house were simply condemning the government action to justify their position as opposition saying the idea of having a government house had been on for long, adding that previous governments in the state lacked the political will to bring it to reality.'The state, since its creation, has no government house; the Ray Field was built as a presidential lodge but converted to government house, so there is the need to have a physical identity not a makeshift government house, the decision was taken in line with the peoples' aspiration. The period of the construction has been spaced in such a way that it will not constitute a financial burden to the state,' he said.Though the contract for the new government house has been signed and sealed with the Eagle Construction Company and billed to be completed within the next 36 months, the state government insisted that being a people oriented government, the people of the state were carri-ed along saying that it was conceived in line with the yearning and aspiration of the people of the state.
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