Gov. Otti; A king answerable to the king makers
By Ogbonnaya Ikokwu, Umuahia
One beautiful thing about the democratic system of government is the citizen’s right to ask questions and receive answers from their elected leaders. Political office holders often appoint aids who act as their spokespersons to serve as a bridge between them and the people.
It is only in rare cases that a political office holder holds direct interaction with both journalists and members of public to take instant question and answer them immediately.
Gov. Alex Otti, having come to power through the massive support and determination of the Abia electorate to send the Peoples Democratic Party out of government, vowed to be accountable to the people throughout out his tenure as Abia State governor.
In keeping to this promise, Gov. Otti through the office of the Special Adviser on Media and publicity Mr Ferdinand Ekeoma, introduced a monthly media interaction with journalists, called “GOVERNOR Alex Otti Speaks to Abians”.
Since its inception in October 2023, the media parley, which allows incensored interaction between the governor, journalist and Abians, affords the governor the platform and opportunity to highlight major strides of his administration, provide clarity on policies and programmes of his government, while taking feedbacks that enable him to serve the people better.
Members of the public are also given the opportunity to ask questions via text messages during the parley, which are streamed live on radio and online media platforms.
The last edition of the media parley held on August 9 in the Banquet Hall of the Goverment House, Umuahia provided another opportunity for the governor to address some major questions bothering the minds of Abia residents.
Among other things, the governor revealed that his administration is working closely with the leadership of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) to work out modalities for the implementation of the new National Minimum Wage of N70,000 to civil servants in the state.
He said that while the State Government team is working with the NLC on the modalities, the state still awaited further clarifications from the Federal Government on the way forward.
“A committee has already been set up. The Government Team together with the Nigeria Labour Congress is already working.
“We are not keeping quiet. We are already making progress,” the governor said.
Gov. Otti also cleared the air over the suspension and subsequent resignation of the former Commissioner for Health, Dr Ngozi Okoronkwo, saying she was not indicted for any financial impropriety.
He insisted the investigative panel on former health commissioner turned in its report and there was no financial impropriety found but there were conducts that were not consistent with lay down policies and procedures of government.
“I want to repeat that money was not stolen. There were procedures that were abused. And since she offered to resign, the government decided to accept her resignation.
“The former Commissioner for Science and Technology, who recently resigned his appointment, had no case with the governor and the government of Abia State. The Commissioner resigned honourably and maintains alignment with the government,” he said.
In line with his administration’s resolve to rejig the health sector and further encourage and incentivise the health workers, the governor announced that he has concluded plans to increase the retirement age of nurses in the state from 60 to 65 years, among other reforms, to provide quality healthcare services to Abians.
Gov. Otti also pointed out that his administration’s policy of sending some civil servants to the classrooms to teach would only apply to workers who had trainings in education-related courses to ensure that a square peg is put in a square hole. He revealed that a robust compensation package would be introduced for teachers in the state in addition to the increase in their retirement age from 60 years to 65 years, too.
Speaking on the state of Abia’s income and expenditure, the governor also disclosed that he has not borrowed to finance projects in the state, promising that he would continue to be focused and ensure financial prudence.
“So far, we have been operating without borrowing a kobo, but we have quite a few offers, at the appropriate time, we will access them. So far, we have not accessed them, the state of the state’s economy is healthy. We will continue to put our eyes on the ball,” he maintained.
On security, Gov. Otti noted that there have been remarkable improvement, owing to the gallantry operation of the “Operation Crush Outfit”, working round the clock to fish out criminals from all the nooks and crannies of the state.
Gov. Otti is keeping to his social contract with Abia residents through the monthly media interaction that offers clarification to many issues that might be bothering the minds of the people.
Apart from the numerous projects that are speaking for the current administrat in the state, the people also hear from the governor they elected and clearly understand the direction the government is going.
#Gov. Otti is Building the new Abia!
#To God be glory!
Ogbonnaya Ikokwu, a journalist and public affairs analyst, writes from Umuahia.