Members of the Plateau State House of Assembly have elected Mr Gabriel Dewan (YPP- Pankshin North) as the new speaker of the house.
The 30-year old Dewan was elected on Tuesday, shortly after the resignation of the former speaker, Mr Moses Sule (PDP -Mikang).
The speaker who spoke with newsmen after his election said that his number one priority would be to unite members of the 10th house for the good of the state.
He urged Plateau people to look beyond political parties, religion, and ethnicity at this critical moment in the life of the state.
“We should come together and unite because we have no other place other than Plateau, and we shouldn’t allow politics of any kind to divide us.
“I have always said in the assembly that I am a unifier. I am the only member of the Young People’s Party (YPP), and whenever I make a contribution on the floor of the house, I always say that I am coming to balance the gap between the APC and the PDP.
“And now that they (APC and PDP) have met and deemed it fit to make me the speaker, it is the right time for me to unite them more.
“All I am asking from Plateau citizens, especially the electorate, is that they should not allow any politician to cause enmity between us because politics will come and go, but Plateau will remain,’’ he appealed.
The new speaker appreciated his colleagues for finding him worthy to lead the 10th assembly at this critical moment in the history of Plateau.
Dewan promised to lead his colleagues with sincerity and commitment.
Sule, the immediate past speaker, told newsmen that, as leaders, they sometimes needed to make sacrifices for things to work.
The former speaker said that his resignation was borne out of patriotism for Plateau to move forward.
“I was not coerced or forced to resign; I did so on my own volition because positive sacrifices have to be made by leaders for the good of the state,’’ he said.