By Marie-Therese Nanlong

Plateau state governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Barr Caleb Mutfwang emerged the Governor-elect after winning the polls on Saturday.

Mutfwang polled 525,299 votes defeated his closest challenger, Dr Nentawe Yilwatda of the All Progressives Congress who had 481,370 votes.

Mutfwang was born on the 12th March, 1965 in Wussasa, Zaria, Kaduna State. He had his Primary education at LEA Primary School, Ampang-West, Mangu LGA from 1973 to 1977.

After that, he attended Boys’ Secondary School, Gindiri, Mangu local government area and graduated in 1982 and worked briefly with the then Federal Office of Statistics and the defunct Nigerian Bank for Commerce and Industry (NBCI).

He continued his educational pursuit at the School of Preliminary Studies, Keffi from 1983 to 1984 before he was admitted into the University of Jos in 1984 and graduated in 1988.

He was called to the Nigerian Bar as a Solicitor and Advocate of the Supreme Court on the 14th of December 1989. He served the mandatory National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme in Kaduna State during which he was elected by his colleagues as the President of the Nigerian Christian Corpers’ Fellowship in Kaduna State.

The Plateau Governor-elect has a rich and enormous job experience, as he engaged in private and active legal practice under the Kaduna based legal firm of Byoma, Ichaba & Co (FIDELITY CHAMBERS) from 1990 to 1995. 

He also founded the Caleb Mutfwang & Co, a firm of Legal Practitioners registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission on the 21st day of March, 1996. 

He was appointed Deputy General Manager, Legal & Secretarial Services in Peugeot Automobile Nigeria Limited, Kaduna from 2002 to 2004. Acting Company Secretary from 2003 to 2004. 

He was member of several professional bodies including the Nigerian Bar Association particularly the Section on Business Law, the International Bar Association; the Christian Lawyers’ Fellowship of Nigeria, the Christian Legal Society of America as well as the Nigerian Institute of Management. 

He is also an alumnus of the prestigious Haggai Institute for Leadership Development, Hawaii, USA. Member of the Boards of several companies in addition to offering legal services to individuals, corporate organisations, Federal Ministries, foreign agencies and governments.

In pursuit of the objective; to guarantee the prosperity of the diverse peoples on the Plateau, Mutfwang in 2011 offered to represent the good people of Mangu/Bokkos in the House of Representatives, under the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

He narrowly lost the primary election to the eventual winner, however in furtherance of his belief in politics without bitterness, and in demonstration of team spirit; he actively mobilised resources for the eventual victory of his opponent at the primaries, as well as other PDP candidates in the general elections which enhanced his popularity greatly.

In 2014, he was called upon by the people of Mangu LGA, to run for office of the Chairman of the LGA, which he won in all but two of the polling units with a vote margin of over 70 thousand votes!

He was elected as the Secretary of the Association of Local Governments (ALGON) in Plateau State, a body which has remained cohesive within the PDP in the State.

Barr Mutfwang is married to Helen and together they have three children Timothy, Nanbam and Enoch. 

Helen Mutfwang; formally Helen Ingbo Goldie, was born in Port Harcourt, Rivers State; to John & Juliet Goldie in 1967. 

His wife hails from Brass LGA, Bayelsa State and first made her way up North to Kaduna in 1991; for her youth service under the NYSC Scheme, after she had finished her Law School in Lagos State.

She would eventually meet Caleb in Kaduna; who as stated earlier was mandated to serve in Kaduna as well. 

They got married on the 13th of February, 1993, a true testament of the NYSC’s development of common ties among the youths of Nigeria; and promotion of national unity, irrespective of cultural or social background.

Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang, is well-known as a committed Christian who loves humanity. 

He is clear-minded, credible and capable of leading the process to raise the bar in governance; and thereby raise Plateau to a new citadel of glory, in line with our collective dreams of a peaceful and prosperous Plateau.