ON A HIGHER PLANE: Being Gov. Otti’s Speech At The Flag Off Of The ABIA Airport Project

ON A HIGHER PLANE

Being the Text of an Address Presented by Governor Alex C. Otti, OFR, at the Flag off of the Abia Airport Project on Tuesday, December 17, 2024, at the Ubaha Community School, Nsulu
Protocols,

1. Leadership is about making the most of the regular and special opportunities that come our way to drive new possibilities. We made a commitment that under our watch; Abia will never let any promising opportunity slip by. Whether it is collaborating with multilateral partners, Federal Government and its agencies, sister states, business organisations and individuals who have something of value to offer us, we are constantly open to making the most of the opportunities we find because there lies the path to sustained progress.
2. This philosophy explains why we have expanded channels of engagements with the international development partners and effectively repositioned our State for first line considerations whenever there are programmes that we qualify for. Our readiness to take advantage of the opportunities that are inherent in these partnerships have multiplied our footprints in critical social and economic sectors, expanding access to health and education, especially for the most vulnerable in our communities.
3. The State recently won a grant of $400, 000 from such collaborations. The fund will be used to support our development initiatives in the primary healthcare sector. Through our partnership with the multilateral organisations, we have been able to support thousands of young Abia entrepreneurs with funds to start up or expand their existing businesses, amongst other benefits. Abia, I am glad to report, has become a model state on the strength of our transparency and commitment to stipulated guidelines in the management of the resources that flow to the State from our partners.
4. Just like we have always done, we jettisoned differences in political party affiliations to pursue opportunities that will support the social and economic transformation of the State in Abuja. The improved state of many federal roads in the state, support for our security commitments through the deployment of personnel and intelligence gathering operations and the expansion of development bridges in finance, education, health and other areas of interests are sufficient proofs that the welfare and long term development aspirations of the State count more for us than political considerations. I would like to use this auspicious occasion to specially thank the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, for his practical commitment to the rapid socioeconomic development of this part of the country. Mr President not only approved the initial plan to build an airstrip in the State, but he also magnanimously consented to our proposal to expand the scope of the project to become a full-fledged airport.

1. Today, we have gathered in Ubaha as one community united in love of fatherland to witness the historic flag off of the Abia Airport Project. I want to welcome in a very special way, the Honourable Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Barrister Festus Keyamo, SAN, to our dear State for this great event. The Honourable Minister has proven to be a great friend of Ndi Abia by the level of commitment he put in to make today’s event feasible. I would like to invite us to join me in thanking the Honourable Minister for specially considering Abia as one of the benefiting states in the spread of the airstrips project and going beyond his regular routine to make this ground-breaking ceremony a reality. I am certain that with his commitment and the continuing support of Mr President, this Project will be completed on schedule and we shall return here in about 36 months or less to commission the airport and welcome the inaugural flight, with Mr President and the Minister on board.
2. I would like to also acknowledge the special contribution of the Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Dr Emmanuel Meribole, a proud son of the State, for his efforts and support to this Project, especially at the conception stages. He generously availed us his experience and technical expertise at no fee. Dr Meribole’s selfless service, models what we expect from our brothers and sisters occupying positions of influence in different establishments. While we will never encourage anyone to break rules, we expect that you will always use your good offices to support our development initiatives or attract new ones because this is part of your larger constituency.
   We want to also specially thank the Chief of Airstaff, Air Marshall HB Abubakar, who is represented here by Air Vice Marshall Ilo for his consistent support and for approving an air force base to be located here at the airport. Our thanks also go to the Deputy Speaker, HOR Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu and his colleagues who are here in person to witness this event. Our appreciation also goes to our Sister we are so proud of, Hon. Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, Minister of State for Labour and Productivity for being consistent with her support.
3. I have heard and read several comments castigating the choice of this Project with many, perhaps speaking from a point of limited information, dismissing the Abia Airport Project as a low priority initiative that should not happen now. May I respectfully respond to these critics by first acknowledging their right to hold and express an opinion. Let me also thank them for their interest in the development conversations around Abia. As I have consistently maintained, our government is very open to criticisms and we welcome interactions that are undertaken in pursuit of public interest, even when they are not very favourable to our preferences.
4. Nigeria is a democratic society and the advantage we have over those who dominated conversations like this in the mid-1980s till 1999 is two-fold. First, the freedom to disagree with those in authority, and the availability of multiple platforms to disseminate our thoughts. Even then, there is one important responsibility we often tend to ignore when we exercise the right to hold and share an opinion and that is the obligation to place facts above emotions. When we begin to incite mistrust and hatred in pursuit of a hidden political agenda, then the law enforcement agencies would be required as a matter of duty to be on the guard against possible breakdown of law and order because democracy itself can survive neither anarchy nor a siege of violence.
5. To those who remain stuck in the pocket-size vision of the old order, an airport project is clearly not an important consideration because one has to crawl before walking. In the New Abia, however, an airport is not just an important project for the long-term prosperity of the State, it is an integral component of our vision to open the State to the world. We are poised to turn Abia into a major destination hub that would welcome hundreds of thousands of unique visitors from different parts of the world every month. Let me also make the point that we are not just building an airport that would be tucked away in some obscure location. We are building an airport city with a lot of ancillary developments around it. The Nsulu games village is in this community. Other facilities including hotels will follow suit.
6. Our aspiration would be impaired without a dedicated airport to serve our most important urban destinations. Recall that I announced last week that we have reached an understanding with a major global hospitality brand to turn the long abandoned Enyimba Hotel into a 250-room 5-Star facility with a world class convention centre. The success of this investment would be threatened if it cannot be accessed seamlessly from the nearest airport. As I also announced recently, we have reached an understanding with an investment partner to drive the Abia medical city project. This will be flagged off within the first quarter of 2025. The full value of the medical city project, designed to drastically reduce medical tourism by providing access to first rate services domestically, can only be actualised by having a functional airport not far from the project location.
7. Our infrastructure restoration and expansion project in Aba is happening at great speed. We are already seeing the fruits in the quality of investments coming into the city as well as enquiries from multiple business interests hoping to take advantage of the bursts of fresh opportunities to create value for their shareholders. This airport will therefore serve as a new advantage to the appeal of Aba as an important destination in the West African sub-region.
8. Umuahia the State capital is also seeing a significant turnaround as we continue to remake the city into a thriving business and administrative centre. Beyond Aba and Umuahia, we have also set up the Greater Ohafia Development Authority (GODA) to fast track the transformation of Ohafia and other parts of the northern district of the State. The expectation is that GODA will evolve initiatives that private sector players can jump at to create new possibilities in the northern part of the state.
9. An airport in Abia, particularly at this location, will not only accelerate our urbanisation agenda beyond Aba and Umuahia, it will also send a clear signal to the world that we are open and prepared to rise to ‘a higher plane’ in the race for social and economic transformation of our homeland.
10. With the scope of our development agenda, the volume of investments we anticipate and the projected influx of high net-worth individuals to the State for businesses, conferences and events, or even for holidays, investing in an airport is certainly the right decision. It has to be noted that an airport is not just the preferred means of travel for the elites; it is a safer and more economical mode of transport for those who want to make every second count. It is also the fastest means to transport essential goods.
11. We found our dream becoming a reality when without our prompting, the Federal Government through the Office of the Honourable Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, selected Abia as one of the states where an airstrip would be sited as captured in the 2024 Appropriation Act. This Project therefore is happening at the instance of the Federal Government because it initiated and would fund it following the donation of land for that purpose by the State. However, because we are a government that is fiercely determined to making the most of every opportunity we find, we realised that this was actually an invitation to the State to have a full-fledged airport to serve its development aspirations.
12. This sense of awareness made us to request the Federal Government to give us the opportunity to partner with it to expand the original project by extending the runway which is essentially the difference between an airport and an airstrip. The logic is simple: if we can have an airstrip, why can’t we take advantage of the opportunity that has been offered us to get a full-fledged airport? Our being here today is proof that we are on track and as I always say, whatever we start, we shall complete successfully.
13. The initial design of this project will allow for a Type 4D runway of 2.8 kilometres with provision for further upgrade to Type 4E runway of 3.6 kilometre to accommodate bigger sizes of aircrafts in due course. Let me on this note thank the good people of Ubaha, Umuaala, Ikputu, Umuosu, Umuezeukwu, Umuode and Umuomaiyinta Nbawsi for their generosity and support for this Project. May I quickly inform you that we have started preparations for payment of compensation to the genuine landowners. We are a compassionate Administration so even when the law has vested ownership of land on the State Government, we will still go ahead to pay very reasonable compensation to those whose lands are used for projects that are geared towards the greater public good.

1. At any rate, the most important fact is that like the State Government, the landowners in these communities are also investors in opportunities. Having joined us in the faith that this would be a profitable investment, one that would create jobs for our children and opportunities for the local entrepreneurs, I can readily assure you today that you shall reap the full benefits of your investments in the fullness of time.
2. May I again assure you that this is our collective Project and we have a responsibility to work together to actualise it. We have activated a multi-level support structure to be coordinated from the Office of the Chief of Staff who is not only from this community, but is also an anointed man of God, to respond to your enquiries. The coordinating team shall be populated by senior officials of the Government, the Contractors and of course, representatives of the landowners. One thing you can take to the bank is that no one will be cheated.
3. Thank you for listening and may God bless you all.

Dr Alex C. Otti, OFR,
17/12/2024