Sycophancy shall have no place in my Administration, Otti tells new commissioners
Gov. Alex Otti of Abia State has declared that his administration has zero tolerance for corruption and non-performance.
Otti made the declaration Friday while swearing in 16 Commissioners at the Banquet Hall of the Government House.
The Governor had penultimate week transmitted 19 Commissioner nominees to the State House of Assembly for confirmation but only 16 were cleared while three were not available for screening.
Otti charged the newly -sworn-in Commissioners to place the interest of the state above every other consideration, adding that they should have no excuse for failure.
“You have not been appointed to represent the interests of individuals or clans. You must therefore spend your waking hours thinking about the entire state as a single constituency; made up of men and women who yearn for better opportunities to advance themselves economically and socially.
“Do not betray the trust of our people who have remained patient and loyal to our course by toeing the same path that brought Abia to the sorry state we met it.
” The privilege of your appointment must never be seen as an opportunity for self-enrichment or advancement of unwholesome interests. There would be zero tolerance for any of those.
“We are here to work for the whole state and anyone who entertains any doubts about that may have found himself in the wrong room.
“The New Abia we are currently laying its foundations shall be one where the interests of the whole state supersedes the selfishness of any individual or entity.
Otti who decried the rot in the state urged the new Commissioners to help him rebuild the state.
“We have our work cut out for us and I am already aware you have some ideas of what is expected of you in your new roles.
“Our state is not in a good place on several important frontiers and our people are in a hurry to start seeing changes, especially as it relates to the things that matter most to them.”
Otti said that job creation, poverty alleviation and measurable improvements in the living conditions of the average Abian would be the centrepiece of his policies.
“We must focus on the essentials in order to begin to demonstrate to our people that we are indeed, the team that would get it right”, Otti said.
Otti who said he was in a hurry to develop the state warned the Commissioners against sycophancy.
“Sycophancy as I have repeated severally shall have no place in my administration. You shall be judged strictly on the basis of what you are bringing to the table, and how you are contributing to improving the material conditions of our people. I do not expect you to achieve everything in one day but there must be a daily commitment to fulfilling the promises that got us elected. “
Meanwhile, three of the Commissioner- nominees who are yet to be cleared by the State House of Assembly, would be sworn in next week according to the Governor.
They include Mike Akpara said to have travelled abroad for treatment; Ngozi Blessing Felix; and Ikechukwu Monday, said to have just returned from overseas where they were working.
AttNews reports that four out of the 19 Commissioners are women while 15 are men.
Speaking on behalf of the new Commissioners, the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Ikechukwu Uwanna, thanked Otti for giving them the opportunity to contribute their quota to the development of the state.
He pledged their commitment to the rapid transformation of the state for the good of all.
