By Tim Ogwuru
In numerical sequence, Abia State is number one in Nigeria but in terms of developmental indices, the ‘’God’s Own State” has taken the back stage over the years. The decadence is as a result of cumulative neglect of the basic dividends of democracy and dysfunctional political structure that has thrown up visionless politicians since the emergence of the fourth republic in 1999.
Abia state, created 31 years ago is one of the few states in Nigeria blessed with unquantifiable array of human capital and natural endowments. The state is a hub of industrialization and commercial activities. It has a large deposit of crude oil and acres of arable land where rubber and palm tree are cultivated.
But the state which was once famous for entrepreneurship, industries and a beehive of economic activities suddenly became a shadow of itself and deteriorated into a society experiencing dearth of functional public utilities, closure of industries with total neglect of infrastructural facilities such as roads, provision of potable water and electricity, etc
The strategic location of the state and plethora of resources therein attracted the federal government to cite the Enyimba City Economic Zone. When completed, the project will be an economic hub for the nine Southeast and South south States. The project on completion will be linked to the railway, airports and seaports. It will not only transform the economy of the state but also turn the region into a manufacturing and industrial powerhouse, where ancillary drivers of commerce, logistics, entertainment, education and health care will thrive.
Despite these endowments, Abia state residents have been unlucky with its leadership choices. The state has been manned by visionless politicians, lacking the requisite political goodwill and capacity to provide good governance to the populace. The power play in the past has churned out irresponsible politicians and mindless looters with total disregard for the people and little commitment to their oath of office. Such financial recklessness and irresponsibilities with public fund must stop.
With the dawn of a new political era, it appears that things are about to change, especially as some of the visionary political leaders from the state have woken up from their slumber, and are now poised to restore the state to its former place of pride. It’s on record that Abia State was one of Africa’s leading industrial centres in the early 70’s and 80’s with the potential to uplift Nigeria as one of the fastest growing economies in the country.
Since 1999, what has been witnessed in Abia State is ‘fantastically corrupt governors’ according to David Cameron former prime minister of United Kingdom. No previous governor of Abia State has displayed any sense of good governance and responsibility in public office. The suffering the masses are going through in the state is as a result of the emergence of irresponsible and careless leaders. Poor governance has over the years dwarfed its social and economic advancement and created monumental corruption and extreme poverty in the State.
There is a complete disconnect between the people of Abia and the political class. The leadership selection process has over the years been reduces to a compensation plan where political praise singers and loyalist are rewarded with the exulted position of the Chief Executive of the state even when they have the least idea of the demands of good governance.
A few vocal voices have attempted to redirect the kingmakers on the need to re-organise the leadership selection process in such a way that competence will be the deciding factor but their views were swallowed by the ignorant majority. since the return to Democracy.
There is no sitting on the fence, we all must act now or continue to live with the consequences of our choices and take the curses that generations unborn will heap on our graves for living them with a bleak future.
2023 is here and it is expected that every right-thinking Abian should be more interested in a candidate that will overhaul the status quo, a candidate that will bring to an end the process that rewards incompetence and exchange it with a process that will introduce novelty into the state. A candidate with a verifiable career anchored on capacity, vision, experience, verifiable leadership records and above all competence .
Following the failures of past executive governors namely Orji Uzor Kalu, Throdore Orji and Okezie Ikpeazu, elected under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) it is time for all concerned citizens of Abia state to look elsewhere. Their cumulative 24 years of holocaust and attendant underdevelopment and looting of state treasury, Abia citizens cannot afford to elect another governor of same stock who institutionalize poverty, hunger, unemployment, lack of basic infrastructure and poor healthcare facilities.
I have X-rayed all the candidates so far in the race for the number one citizen of Abia state, only the candidate of Labour Party, Dr. Alex Otti stands out among all the other aspirants with the hunger to develop the state having served in the corporate world and rising to the top management position in Diamond Bank.
The banker turned politician has an intimidating profile that makes him fit to govern Abia state. He graduated with a First Class Honours degree in Economics from the University of Port Harcourt in Nigeria in 1988. He subsequently received an MBA from the University Of Lagos in 1994. His banking career took him from Citibank through United Bank For Africa to First Bank of Nigeria where he rose to the level of Executive Director and Board Member. His last port of call was in Diamond Bank Plc, now merged with Access Bank, where he was Managing Director and CEO for a period of 4 years.
Otti is a brilliant and unassuming gentleman. He is full of humility personified; a man who, despite his enviable accomplishments, treats everyone with great respect. He is a rare breed who has continued to demonstrate uncommon ability to sacrifice personal comfort for the good of all.
Armed with practical ideas, contacts, professional experience and above all, the desire to do good, Otti is clearly the kind of person who can bring about the needed radical transformation of Abia state.
Despite the distractions of politics, his passion to provide jobs and serve the public led him to establish Signature Bank with other professionals in December, 2022 to deepen Nigeria’s financial inclusion, targeting over 40 million unbanked and underbanked citizens.
The establishment of Signature Bank was driven by a yearning gap created by repeated unresolved complaints, poor responsiveness, and unsavory customer experience encountered regularly by the banks he and his colleagues did business with.
There’s no doubt that Alex Otti is the only candidate with the requisite experience and capacity to turn Abia state into a world class state if he is elected the next governor of the state just as he did in the banking sector.
Tim A. Ogwuru (MA, Liverpool, MRIPA) writes from Abuja – Nigeria.
