Savouring Otti’s 2 years of strategic, focused and purposeful leadership
– By Eagle Okoro
Again, Nigerians, especially the political class, rolled out the drums on Thursday to celebrate yet another milestone in Nigeria’s 26 years of uninterrupted democratic governance.
Obviously, May 29, 1999 is deserving of lavish commemoration, given the country’s chequered political history, hence various subnational governments have lined up programmes and activities to commemorate the fulfilling emotions, joy and excitement that resonate with it.
But the celebration of Democracy Day in Abia goes far beyond the mere return to democratic dispensation. For the indigenes and non-indigenes alike, the joy and ecstacy are essentially about the dawn of a New Abia – a state that is working and prosperous.
The people are, for the second year, celebrating God’s gift of a visionary and pragmatic leader, who has intentionally committed his entire being toward transforming every facet of Abia’s socio-economic life, proving that what was deemed impossible under the past governments is indeed possible with God and a committed and honest leadership.
Thus, Gov. Chioma Alex Otti, Abia’s fourth Chief Executive, has proven that the resources of the state can, truly, be used to work for the state and its good people, restoring hope to the hopeless and reimagining the once battered reputation and public perception of the God’s own State.
It is to demonstrate their appreciation of the sustained momentum of the new development trajectory in a state that was scornfully rated the most undeveloped, unprogressive and dirtiest, East of the Niger, during the previous administrations of transactional politicians, that the people resolved to organise carnivals and parties to practically thank the governor for his towering and superlative achievements in all fronts in a mere two years of his tenure.
The celebration held in Aba, the Enyimba City on May 21, when the appreciative and vociferous Aba business community and Landlords Association blazed the trail with what they dubbed the “Promise Kept Carnival”. It was a huge celebration that saw virtually all the residents troop out to acknowledge the excellent work of Gov. Otti in the commercial city.
The organisers staged the carnival to particularly show Aba’s limitless joy over the eventual completion of the reconstruction of the Port Harcourt Road, a project that was considered jinxed, defying several PDP-led government’s pretentious efforts.
Hear what the Chairman of the carnival, Chief John Udegbala, said, “The Aba business community and landlord association decided to put together an event to show total appreciation to the governor.
“We are saying thank you because the projects executed by this administration are numerous but Port Harcourt Road stands out.
“The giant strides taking place in Aba had helped to encourage investors and business owners that left Aba to return.
“The governor has shown true leadership by putting the needs and welfare of the citizens first.”
The Convener of the carnival, Mr Onyeka Udeaja, also had this to say: “The event is organised because of the desire of Aba residents to thank the God for the transformation in the city.
“This carnival of praise is totally dedicated to God for answering our prayers for good governance.
“What we are witnessing in Abia is the evidence of God’s hand upon you and even those that did not believe can now see.
“Time will not permit me to enumerate your numerous achievements but one sterling project of your administration that stands out is the completion of the Port Harcourt Road.”
Both speakers underscored the cardinal thrust and focus of the current government, which include that the governor actually put “the needs and welfare of the citizens first” and the fact that Abians received divine answer to their long and fervent “prayers for good governance”.
It is strategic to recall at this juncture that Port Harcourt Road began to fail during the administration of Sen. Orji Uzor Kalu (1999 – 2007). It deteriorated and became impassable under Sen. Theodore Orji (2007 – 2015) and turned into a “forest” during the eight-year administration of a “son of the soil”, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu (Nw’Aba) between 2015 and 2023.
When the banker extraordinaire-turned politician kicked off his 2023 governorship campaign, he coined a captivating mantra that conveyed a powerful message of hope to the electorate and Abians in general, urging them to “Weep no more, help is on the way”.
As usual, his opponents, particularly the PDP-political merchants, who saw themselves as “landlords”, jeered and booed him, and also wrote him off as “a serial loser”, and practically gave him no chance in the contest.
But key elements of his manifesto were the issues of salary and pension arrears, huge infrastructure deficit, with the entire length and breadth of the Abia landscape dotted with dilapidated and decayed infrastructural facilities, non-functional educational and health institutions as well as the unsightly and horrible state of the environment.
Interestingly, in just two years of a four-year tenure, Gov. Otti’s scorecard has roundly beaten and surpassed the records of the three separate administrations between 1999 and 2023 aggregated.
Without any waste of time, the governor hit the ground running, following his successful inauguration on May 29 and since then has sustained the pace of development, extending the limits of his New Abia agenda beyond the expectations of all, including his political detractors.
Foremost PDP proponents and media handlers, with frontline radio analysts, like the former Commissioner in the last administration, Ugochukwu Emezue, and his ally, Ifeanyi Umere, have long come to terms with the reality of the new development paradigm that has progressively transformed Abia under Gov. Otti.
Gladly, the duo and other cynics of their kind are favourably overwhelmed by the governor’s Midas touch and are no longer “hallucinating” on radio. It’s been commendations galore from both critics.
They have joined the team of nonpartisan, objective assessors of the governor’s two-year performance and have acquiesced, being in agreement with the popular opinion that something positively different and transformative is happening in Abia, courtesy of the man “wey sabi rule”.
Being eloquently prepared for the task of governance, the governor approached his job in a strategic, focused, committed, meticulous, purposeful and pragmatic manner.
He has also since his assumption of office been up and running in discharging and fulfilling every commitment in his manifesto, beginning with the defrayal of a staggering N17.6 billion workers salary arrears inherited from the ex-Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu’s PDP-government.
In the same way, he also commenced the defrayal of the humongous N30 billion pension arrears, with a pledge to return to the negotiation table with the pensioners on how to seamlessly clean up the PDP’s Augean stable (being the heap of mess left behind by the last PDP government). And like the popular gospel song says, “He pays the debt he did not owe”, following in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, the saviour!
Today, to the credit of the current administration, the payment of workers’ salaries and pensions has not only been regularised but both come pari passu on the 27th or 28th of every month. This has become a matter of State Government’s policy. Hence, in the words of the governor, “never again shall Abia pensioners be owed arrears of their pensions”.
The administration has also demonstrated steadfastness in addressing the huge infrastructure gap in the state, and has recorded huge progress with the over 200 roads that have either been completed or at various stages of completion.
The long list of the major and capital intensive road projects includes the 6.8-km Port Harcourt Road, Aba, which received the master touch of the globally-acclaimed construction giant, Julius Berger: 67-km Umuahia-Uzuakoli-Abiriba-Ohafia Road: 30-km Arochukwu-Ndi Okereke-Ozuabam Road; Osisioma-Ekeakpara Industrial Road; the six-lane Aguiyi Ironsi Boulevard (formally called Ossah Road); 12.6-km Ohanze-Ntighauzor-Akirika Obu Road, and the 5.5-km Owerrinta-Umuikaa Expressway, connecting Abia with Imo.
The icing on the cake, as many Abians would say, is the ongoing reconstruction of the historic Omenuko Bridge, linking Abam with Ohafia and Arochukwu communities. The list is certainly inexhaustive, having missed out internal roads in Umuahia, Aba, Ohafia and a myriad of other rural/community roads currently and simultaneously undergoing construction or rehabilitation across the three Senatorial Districts of Abia Central, Abia North, and Abia South.
On education, aside from the reforms introduced by the administration to enhance the quality of education in the state, over 251 schools are currently undergoing renovation, with 20 being upgraded to smart schools, equipped with modern learning facilities.
In fulfillment of his promise to tackle the low ratio of teachers to students population and also restore confidence in public schools in the state, the governor recently approved the recruitment of 5,300 teachers. This is in addition to the reacquisition and rehabilitation of public schools criminally sold during the past administration.
To this government’s proud accomplishment, all the courses offered by the Abia State University, some of which scandalously lost their accreditation under PDP’s watch, had been fully accredited, following major infrastructure upgrade and administrative reforms.
Beyond the foregoing and pursuant to his people-oriented and compassionate approach to governance, the governor recently introduced free and compulsory education at the primary and junior secondary school levels to lessen the huge burden of education on parents and guardians and checkmate the growing school dropout syndrome.
The administration has also received tremendous commendations for its enormous transformative works in the health sector. Presently, 200 Primary Health Centres (PHCs) have been upgraded to provide efficient health services to Abians at the community level.
The governor has also given approval for the renovation and retrofitting of the 948 PHCs across the state to ensure people’s unfettered access to basic healthcare.
According to sources at the Ministry of Health, three specialist hospitals, including the Abia State University Teaching Hospital, Aba, and the General Hospital, Umunneochi, are currently undergoing reconstruction. This is besides the renovation and retrofitting of the Amachara General Hospital, near Umuahia, together with the Abia State Eye Specialist Hospital, Umuahia.
To effectively tackle the challenge of manpower deficit, the governor also approved the recruitment of 771 healthcare professionals to enhance service delivery in primary and secondary health facilities.
Gov. Otti has also been inimitable in ensuring that the security architecture in Abia becomes top notch. Having successfully deployed its multi-agency security outfit, codenamed “Operation Crush”, to smoke out dare-devil hoodlums from the notorious Lokpanta/Umunneochi area of the Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway, the government progressed with the introduction of crime-fighting technology to underscore its unwavering commitment to completely stamping out violent crime and criminality from any part of the Abia territory. Today, Abia residents, visitors and thoroughfarers move about in an absolutely secure and serene environment. Kidnapping for ransom, armed robbery and other forms of violent criminal attacks have been drastically reduced to the barest level.
The Light-up Abia initiative of the administration did not only enhance night illumination and aesthetics of Umuahia and Aba towns, it also bolstered security as night life has returned with residents freely strolling around town until late in the night, either for social or economic reasons.
In all, there are over 7,000 solar-powered streetlights installed to boost safety and promote a 24-hour economy in the two major cities.
On the environmental front, the State Government has vigorously executed its clean up Abia agenda with a rejuvenated and result-driven management at the Abia State Environmental Protection Agency. Today, Abia has become one of the leading states in the federation in terms of environmental cleanliness, courtesy of Gov. Otti’s emergency declaration on waste disposal and management.
Furthermore, the government has within the period under review implemented serious human capital development and economic empowerment programmes in digital technology and agriculture. The over 300 persons that underwent training at the CSS Integrated Farms in Nasarawa have long been given interest-free loans that ran into millions of naira and are doing well in their respective areas of training. This is in addition to the 509 youths that recently completed a three-month training programme from Abia TechRise, jointly sponsored by the State and 17 Local Governments.
More gratifying is that all the projects and programmes, being a testament to committed, sincere and purposeful leadership by the governor, genuinely aided by his equally committed lieutenants, are all physically on ground and verifiable. They are neither projects “in the pipeline” nor media creations as was the tradition in times past. They were projects and programmes honestly conceived and executed in a manner that they are not only sustainable but capable of standing the test of time.
Of course, Abians, including indigenes and non-indigenes, have genuine reasons to celebrate Gov. Otti and the successes that mark this year’s Democracy Day.
But, like the Governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Ukoha Njoku, rightly said: “As the state marks its second anniversary under Gov. Alex Otti, the celebration will be modest, but meaningful.
“We are not celebrating government; we are celebrating God, who is using the governor as an instrument of good governance.”
Also, in a brief remark about the lofty achievements of the two-year-old administration, the Commissioner for Information, Prince Okey Kanu, has this to say: “What His Excellency has done in the last two years is a tip of the iceberg.
“It is more like a dress rehearsal. You aren’t seen nothing yet.”
Kanu said that the State Executive Council had spent the past few days engaging in self evaluation and appraisal, setting a bigger target for the next stanza of the administration. He gave assurance that Abians would reap more bumper harvest in the years ahead.
To the governor, the feat so far recorded by his government did not amount to doing favour to Abians. According to him, the numerous projects were the people’s entitlements and a justification for the mandate generously handed to him as governor.
It was for this unique and patriotic mindset that he once said: “We must remove from political campaigns, the things that are supposed to be normal rights, such as good roads, quality education, clean water, and security. These are not favours. These are entitlements.”
But yet, Abians of good conscience are grateful to him for providing them good governance and selfless service, which eluded them for 24 long years. To God be the glory!
– Eagle Okoro is a public affairs analyst and writes from Umuahia