Why Obinna Oriaku, et al should bury their faces in shame
– By Eagle Okoro
The Holy Bible says in Proverbs 18:2 (New King James Version) that “A fool has no delight in understanding, But in expressing his own heart”.
The Amplified Bible went further to dissect the quote thus: “A [closed-minded] fool does not delight in understanding,
But only in revealing his personal opinions [unwittingly displaying his self-indulgence and his stupidity].
Since Dr Chioma Alex Otti emerged the Governor of Abia State in 2023, certain political characters have remained persistent in displaying their stupidity and shamelessness – a proof that they have no shame for all their atrocities against the land of Abia.
The permanent defeat and final decimation of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state by a one-man squad has left the trio of Obinna Oriaku, John Okiyi and Eze Chikamnayo perpetually brooding and sulking. They lost power to a man they roundly and vehemently resisted and rejected and at a time they thought they had pocketed all the agencies of government, including the Independent National Electoral Commission.
No doubt, Dr Otti posed a recalcitrant nemesis and a stubborn albatross to Abia PDP and its chieftains, who saw the state as their private inheritance, which they exploited and hoped to continually exploit to no end. But God said that enough is enough, using the erstwhile bank chief executive to end the years of rape and reckless plundering of our common patrimony as a state.
So, having forcefully and prematurely retired them, depriving them of their source of livelihood, they vowed to constitute an irritant opposition to Gov. Otti’s government – no matter how exceptional and superlative it proves to be in providing good governance and dividend of democracy for the people.
To execute their heinous and treacherous project, the three-member cabal initiated the worst ever damaging propaganda, blended with blackmail, which it hopes to sustain and heighten as 2027 draws closer.
Their ultimate target is to continue to distract the government, damage the reputation of the administration and portray it in the most demonised form in the eyes of the public, and ultimately pitch the All Progressives Congress (APC) led Federal Government against Gov. Otti and his administration.
Their strategy is to payroll and mandate a media team to continue to churn out and bombard the media space with distorted facts as well as blatant and malicious falsehood against the government and its finances.
That is a project the former “pro bono” Commissioner for Finance in the last and worst administration ever in the history of Abia, Mr Obinna Oriaku, has volunteered to spearhead and bankroll with his ill-acquired wealth.
It is worth to recall that Obinna Oriaku was Abia’s exchequer when the Federal Government of late Muhammed Buhari released Paris Club Refund and Bailout Funds, amounting to billions of naira, to Abia.
The Buhari’s bailout fund was tied to the defrayment of the outstanding arrears of workers’ salaries, magnanimously doled out to virtually all the states of the federation.
But while the purpose of the unprecedented Federal Government’s financial intervention was fully realised in all the other beneficiary states, this was not so with Abia. Hence the Ikpeazu’s administration bequeathed the present government with a humongous debt profile of well over N50 billion unpaid workers’ salary arrears, in addition to N30 billion unpaid pensions.
How ironical and ridiculous it is, therefore, that the same Obinna Oriaku, who superintended over the receipts and utilisation of all those Federal Government’s interventions, but failed woefully to account for how they were utilised, has suddenly become an apostle of good governance and accountability.
It is also regrettable that rather than judiciously and religiously utilise the humongous financial interventions to liquidate the accumulated debts, the ousted administration squandered the funds, shamelessly failing to give Abians an account of how the money was utilised.
Again, rather than bury their faces in shame, and beg kind-hearted Abians and the government to forgive their excesses in power, including squandering Abia’s wealth and plunging its people into misery and deprivation, they are shamelessly walking boldly on the streets of Abia, moving from one radio house to another, ranting balderdash and claiming to be advocates and defenders of the same people they cruelly pauperised and dehumanised.
Today, most of these conmen have migrated to APC, where they hibernate to conspire in their own illusions and foolishness “to take over Abia in 2027”, believing that Abians are fools and have lost memory of how they hijacked and plundered their commonwealth, left them impoverished and subjected the state to gross and massive underdevelopment.
These men, who ruined the fortunes of Abia for 24 long years, are nothing but fools who, according to the scripture, lack understanding but delight in revealing their personal opinions, unwittingly displaying their self-indulgence and stupidity.
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They fail to understand and appreciate better things due to their foolishness.
So, instead of appreciating the good work of a governor that God sent to redeem its own state and people from the deep mess they were made to live in for over two decades, they stupidly formed a clique of senseless opposition, which has no kind words for the great and superlative works of Gov. Otti’s administration.
So, while the world and great Abians of good conscience are singing Hosanna for the great things that God is using Gov. Otti to achieve, these men of little or no understanding are busy shouting “remove him, remove him”.
But Gov. Otti is not distracted. He remains focused and will continue to deliver on his campaign promises to rebuild all the dilapidated major roads in the state, renovate and equip all the public schools and health institutions, including health centres in all the communities in the state.
He has also remained resolute and consistent in the payment of salaries and pensions as and when due. He has defrayed over N72 billion from the staggering N138 billion debt bequeathed to him by Ikpeazu.
Today, Umuahia, the capital city, and Aba, the economic and industrial hub of the state, have received facelift, in terms of infrastructure upgrade and environmental sanity and cleanliness. The two cities have suddenly dropped the garb of filthiness and have become aesthetically appealing, with the solar-powered streetlights that make them alluring and new destinations for business and comfort, east of the Niger, especially at night.
The impressive physical transformation that has taken place in Abia in the last 29 months clearly differentiates Gov. Otti from his predecessors and opponents. And whereas the governor, already a fulfilled man, desired political power to serve humanity and positively rewrite Abia’s development history, his opponents’ interest remains primarily to capture power and embezzle public funds. But they should be reminded that their dossier and past records as public servants at different levels are in public domain for scrutiny, anytime, anyday.
It is worth to reiterate that Gov. Otti sought political power to provide good governance and quality leadership, which eluded Abia for 24 years of PDP. Those expectations he has truly and religiously continued to provide since May 29, 2023, which is why he is receiving resounding accolades from good Abians at home and in the diaspora.
So, the plot by Obinna Oriaku and his co-travellers to distract and derail the course of good works and the rebuilding of Abia has hit the rock.
It was long envisaged that such evil men as Oriaku, Okiyi and Chikamnayo would certainly rear up their ugly heads to undertake and execute anachronistic and retrogressive roles designed to stall Abia’s progress and development.
But to God be the glory that Gov. Otti came to power prepared and possesses the unyielding capacity to absorb and surmount all the antics of his traducers. He has also shown proof that he is irrevocably committed to making Abia great, notwithstanding the gangsterism and imbecilic activities of his adversaries.
– Eagle Okoro is a public affairs commentator and writes from Umuahia