ONE MONTH OF RENEWED HOPE IN ABIA STATE: Eid-El Kabir Message To Abians From Dr. Engr. Odo Ijere Okpotemba Ohafia
I want to start this piece by first felicitating with the good people of Abia State on the occasion of this year’s Sallah holidays and to especially fraternize with our Muslim brethren at Eid El Kabir celebrations.
Barka de Sallah umunnem na umunnam ndi Abia. This felicitation also goes to the entire Abia Obidients and all Abians that trooped out enmass to give their mandates to His Excellency, Dr. Alex Otti on the 18th of March, 2023 to restart Abia on a new developmental charter after 24 PDP wasted years.
It must be restated here that in electing Dr. Alex Otti under the Labour Party, the Peter Obi wave of change that trended nationwide during the election played a key role in galvanizing the Abia masses accordingly. The result was the massive and unprecedented trust given to Dr. Alex Otti to put the State on the path of rectitude and cause a reinvention of governance putting the people first.
The mandate was not given to Labour Party but to Dr. Alex Otti as the only one that could be trusted among the contestants around. Abians did not make any mistake as Dr. Alex Otti’s contestation for the number one seat for the third time was no longer stranger to the voting public. His antecedents and pedigree was already a sing-song in the State. The outcome was inevitable.
The inauguration of Dr. Alex Otti on the 29th of May, 2023 was another historical epoch only rivaled by the famous declaration of Biafra by Colonel Chukwuemeka Odimegwu Ojukwu in Enugu, in 1967 which virtually had all the Igbos in attendance. The people and peoples from the entire old Eastern region converged in Enugu to urge, nudge and to listen to Odimegwu Ojukwu declare Biafra a separate Republic. The rest is history.
In similatude, Alex Otti’s swearing in ceremony on the 29th of May, 2023 was another referendum on Igbo soil after the famous 1967 declaration incident and showed how important it was to Ndigbo and other men of goodwill that the travesty going on in Abia State since 1999 in the name of governing the State was brought to an end.
People again came from all parts of not just the old Eastern region of Nigeria, but across the country to grace the occasion; Emir Sanusi Lamido, Datti Baba Ahmed, Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, Rotimi Amaechi, Attan Achonu, Cosmas Maduka, Davido, General Ike Oma Sanda Nwachukwu, Commodore Ebitu Ukiwe etal.
It is therefore not out of place for Abians to expect big from Dr. Alex Otti and his government because he has proven capacity to fulfill all his promises and even to do more. Abians are also not going to stampede him into overreaching himself or to embark on the mission impossible.
One month is not enough time also to ask for his scorecard or determine his government thematic. This is the time to define the government priorities and set the templates of systems that will make the state workable. The governor himself is expected to clean up the Aegean stable to bring sanity back to the state in order to make the state investment friendly. If the systems start working again, investors will come back to join in developing the state.
Among the major expectations of Abians under the New Abia regime is to hold the past regimes accountable for their misdeeds. They wilfully robbed and raped the state with brazen rascality and in utter contempt of the people. Therefore the genesis of resetting the state should begin with setting up a high powered judicial panel to recover all state assets, both tangible and intangible including monies brazenly stolen from our treasury.
There must be no resting for the wicked. Let us come together and support Alex Otti in this one. These wicked sons of Satan that ruled our state have kept our money to be used in bribing the fulani security agencies who will collude with them to denigrate and deprive us further of our patrimony. That is what gives them the audacity and confidence to be spoiling for a fight with us. Let us rally round Dr. Alex Otti and face these criminals. They cannot defeat us even with what they’ve stolen.
Recovery of Public Property and our assets is one of the most important first steps being initiated under this New Abia government. It is not Alex Otti’s fight alone, it is our fight together as Abians. Once we get it right, other development templates will set sail. Barka de Sallah.
Dr. Engr. Odo Ijere, okpotemba.
