By SN24.com 
- By Mary Vuls.
The Governorship Candidate of the *Allied Peoples Movement, APM*, in Plateau State, *Samuel Danauta Kyarkshik*, has declared his mission to _“rescue Plateau”_ from poverty, insecurity and economic underutilisation, saying the state remains rich in potential but poor in results.
Speaking during an interactive session with journalists in Jos, Kyarkshik said he is contesting to return God-fearing leadership, end dependence on federal allocation, and restore security to the state.
_“We are in this race to rescue Plateau. Plateau today is on potential — potential is energy at rest. There is so much Plateau can become that it is not yet,”_ he said.
*”Plateau is Richest But Among Poorest”*
Kyarkshik, who described himself as a development practitioner and scientist with a first degree in Pure Chemistry, said Plateau is arguably the richest state in Nigeria in terms of solid minerals, human capital, topography and weather, yet rated among the poorest.
_“Today there are over 50 commercial solid minerals on the Plateau. We have important agricultural products that can be commercialised, yet none has been maximised economically to take us out of poverty.”_
He cited data from the *National Bureau of Statistics* putting Nigeria’s poverty rate at 63 per cent, while Plateau stands at *84 per cent*, making it one of the seven to eight poorest states despite huge revenue inflows to states since 1999.
_“There has never been a time where governors get the kind of revenue they are getting today, but on the Plateau, it is as if we are not getting anything.”_
*Security is No 1 Priority: “An Eye for An Eye”*
Kyarkshik said insecurity will be his number one priority, describing current efforts as mere rhetoric.
According to him, between 2023 and 2025, over *167 communities were attacked*, leading to the loss of over *2,630 lives* and over *45,000 Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs*, who are yet to return to their ancestral homes.
_“Security is beyond rhetoric. Ending insecurity is beyond coming out to condemn killings. I have a radical approach: An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. I can’t be governor and someone comes into Plateau, kills innocent people and goes back without investigation.”_
_“In my inaugural speech when we win, we are going to declare war on enemies, bandits and criminals within and around our people. They are already owing us. Cases have gone cold. We will reopen cases and go after the killers,”_ he declared.
He said criminality has become organised and requires a leader with boldness and field experience in defending communities.
*Economic Master Plan and Industrialisation*
Unveiling his blueprint tagged *“Plateau State Transformation Roadmap 2027-2037”* and the *Plateau Economic Master Plan*, a 120-page document, Kyarkshik said Plateau needs industrialisation driven by its minerals.
He gave examples:
– *Lead in Southern Plateau:* 75 per cent raw material for car battery — _“No reason Plateau should not have a car battery factory.”_
– *Graphite:* For brake pads.
– *Barite in Central Plateau:* For car bumpers and dashboards.
– *Copper in Kanam:* For armoured cables.
– *Irish Potatoes in 9 LGAs in Northern Plateau:* Over 95 per cent taken out raw. _“From potato you can get starch, flour, Pringles, chips and over nine other products. The value chain is underutilised.”_
– *Plastic Waste Innovation:* Showcasing an interlock tile made by his company from 70% plastic and 30% sharp sand.
_“Plateau needs a radical leader with a commercial mindset. Probably because past governments were not scientists. I will be the first chemist, the first scientist to lead the state. That is an advantage,”_ he said.
He also proposed a *Plateau State Drug Rehabilitation Centre* for youths addicted to drugs and decried prostitution and trafficking of Plateau girls.
*On Terminus Market: “We Are Losing N60bn Daily”*
Responding to a question on markets, Kyarkshik said the current administration has failed on insecurity, markets and protection of indigenous rights.
He said his research in October 2025 showed Plateau loses about *N60 billion daily* from not rebuilding the burnt *Terminus Market* in the last 24 years.
_“If you take N60 billion and divide by 12 months, you have about N5 billion, almost equal to federal allocation. I will rebuild Terminus in its same position planned by the late J.D. Gomwalk — two stories upward, with parking — not move it to the entrance of the city. We want that N60bn back as revenue,”_ he said.
He disclosed he met with *19 of the 24 chairmen* of Terminus Market, and criticised the destruction of the *Kogiyang open market*, saying open markets form the informal economy that should be regularised, not destroyed.
*”Palliatives Don’t End Poverty, Skills Do”*
On palliatives and alleged rejection of his ideas, Kyarkshik said he has consulted for Bauchi and Gombe States and over 25 companies, and submitted over *eight proposals* to the Plateau State Government.
_“In June 2024, I submitted a proposal to set up Plateau State Human Capital Development Agency. They collected it and did nothing. By January 2025, they inaugurated a Human Capital Development Council under the Deputy Governor. It was dead on arrival and has gone moribund,”_ he claimed.
He clarified he is not contesting because he was denied appointment, noting he contested in 2019.
_“My party, APM, is not fighting Caleb Mutfwang. We are fighting 84 per cent poverty. We are fighting for youths smoking in the jungles with degrees but no jobs, for girls into prostitution not by choice, for elderly parents whose children beg on Facebook for hospital bills.”_
He promised *free healthcare and free education from kindergarten to tertiary*, recalling that in 1994 government paid his WAEC fees.
_“Poverty is simply lack of skills. N1.5 million palliative will finish in seven days. It is skills, contemporary skills that the labour market needs, that remove poverty, not palliatives.”_
Kyarkshik said Plateau needs a leader with political will, a written blueprint and the capacity to execute, adding: _“Whatever is not written cannot be executed. We have written it ourselves.”_