Development And A New Philosophy Of Leadership: Being Gov. Otti's Speech At The Swearing In Of The 17 Election Mayors/Deputies In ABIA State

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Development and a New Philosophy of Leadership

Being the Text of a Speech by Governor Alex C. Otti, OFR, at the Swearing in of the 17 Elected Mayors/Deputies in Abia State at the Banquet Hall Umuahia on Monday, November 04, 2024.

Protocols

The foundation of leadership excellence is in the ability to understand and respond progressively to the needs of the people for no leader succeeds by accident, luck or because of their good intentions alone. History has demonstrated again and again that leaders who rise to the demands of the times appreciate the scope of the responsibilities before them and the likely challenges they may encounter from external and internal channels over the course of their tenure. What ultimately sets them apart is the capacity to develop a dynamic template for responding to, and mitigating the impacts of those challenges.
A leader who has a good awareness of what lies ahead will always outperform the ones who elect to wait, in the vain hope that they will constantly have the wind in their sails. Leadership, as I have learnt from personal experience and keen observation of many accomplished leaders in various fields of human endeavours, is never a tea party. It is for the brave, those who dare to believe in themselves and the quality of impact they can make within the limits of resources and time available.
One who wishes to be a successful leader must be enthusiastic to understand the environment around which they operate. This would require knowing the people, the structure of the operational institutions and the dynamics of the interactions between the public and the institutions that are set up to cater for their social and economic needs. Successful leaders understand from the get-go that leadership is about the people, their aspirations, fears and affections. A leader’s job therefore is to create a new reality, inspire the people to dream and show through the force of personal example and dedication that the human spirit is limitless in terms of what it can bring forth when we push the boundaries of possibilities far enough.
Every great society that has ever existed or exists today was built by human ingenuity, ordinary people like you and I who never settled for anything less than the best. From the great empires of old to today’s modern states and institutions, one thing that has remained constant is that the human mind is capable of producing whatever you can ask of it. Our possibilities, I have found out, are therefore limited by our beliefs, interpretation of reality and the scale of what we are willing to tolerate.

The New Abia vision, beyond the transformation in the public infrastructure landscape, is largely about inspiring all of us to change the prism with which we view and interact with the world. It is about inspiring us to think of ourselves as equal to the greatest and most accomplished men and women that have ever walked the surface of the earth and refusing to accept mediocrity in all its manifestations. The new governance framework is an invitation to be inspired by what had been achieved by other human beings in different parts of the world and make a commitment that in our lifetime; we must do our best to bring a permanent closure to certain challenges that had plagued our communities for ages.
We may not be able to take a man to the moon in the next year or two or construct anything close to some of the mind-blowing infrastructure projects we see in different corners of the world each time we travel for business or holidays. Even then, there are a few challenges that we can effectively tackle in the short to medium term including access to potable water for every home in our communities, quality basic education, electricity for homes and businesses, affordable transportation, improved environmental conditions, quality road networks, and safe and secure neighbourhoods.
As a government, we have stayed resolutely committed to addressing the basic challenges that previously stood as barriers to the productivity of our hardworking population. Many may have forgotten but it is important to recall that when we assumed office, parts of this State were under the firm control of criminal elements, most of the urban roads were impassable, mountains of refuse defined our urban landscape and several employees of the state government had lost all motivation to do their daily job because they were owed for several months. It was a lot worse for our pensioners as they faced the misery of being paid less than 40% of what was statutorily due them at irregular intervals.
I am glad to report that today, there is a 360-degree turnaround in our social and economic circumstances. The streets of our urban centres are cleaner, salaries and entitlements of workers and retirees are paid as and when due, road rehabilitation and reconstruction have become regular, non-stop activities in all parts of the State and more fundamentally, roads that were impassable for about 20 years are being opened up. This has led to a new sense of optimism amongst residents and businesses in the State, not minding what is happening in the wider macroeconomic environment. For the first time in several years, farmers in Isuikwuato and Umunneochi are able to go to their farms without fear of harassment from home-grown or marauding terrorists and those who travel for social events in these places return safely, with no tales of sorrow to share.
The message today is that we can make a difference when we refuse to accept the idle excuses that stifle development initiatives. We have to embrace the fact that we are in leadership to solve problems, uplift people and use the leverage of government to give everyone a chance to live the fullest expression of their dreams.
On this note distinguished ladies and gentlemen, let me now specially welcome you to the swearing-in ceremony of the 17 LGA Mayors and their deputies who emerged victorious in the November 2 LGA election. Let me formally congratulate the newly elected local government officials for their success at the polls. May I also congratulate the Abia State Independent Electoral Commission (ABSIEC) and its leadership for an excellent job of conducting very free and fair electoral exercise. Special commendations are also due to all the political parties and candidates that took part in the exercise. I want to congratulate all of you for the spirit of sportsmanship, disposition to service and discipline to follow the rules. You may not have won but the future remains very bright.
One thing I will encourage the 34 of you who will take over the executive seats across the 17 LGAs to do is to begin to reach out to our friends who did not make it, bring everyone together and make it known to them that you are willing to listen to their development ideas and work with them for the speedy development of the local government areas. Do not isolate anyone but again, you must be careful not to be misled by suggestions from those who will reap extensive political benefits from your failure. You are to take full responsibility for whatever idea or programme you elect to run with, so it is important that every proposal is carefully dissected to see what makes sense in the short to long term.
The successful conduct of the LGA elections gives me great sense of fulfilment because now we have elected officials who will drive the grassroots development of the State. You were elected on a set of definite promises and there can be no excuse for subpar performance. You will be 100% responsible for the development outputs in your different local governments going forward. The prudent thing to do is to gird your loins for the tough task ahead. Recall that I had mentioned that nobody succeeds in leadership by accident. Many of you must have had one leadership experience or the other before now but I can assure you that this is an entirely different kettle of fish.
While you may have emerged from different political platforms, the agenda remains the same: Abia first. We have since laid the marker at the State, my expectation is that you will run with the vision and continue the work of the socio-economic transformation of Abia from your various LGAs. As I had also said, your task is to solve the basic problems that have bedevilled our people in the various communities for ages. Access to water, basic health and education services, effective maintenance of Truck C roads and quick response to security threats in your local communities should rank very high in your order of priorities. Our people should be able to see the impact of your leadership in the next six months through measurable improvements in the living conditions of the people, especially women, youths and the vulnerable in the various localities.
The State is open, and in fact looks forward to partnering with you to drive your coordinated development agenda because we are in this boat together, especially as we share the same employers. It is imperative that we develop a framework of effective collaboration to be able to achieve improved outcomes especially in the areas of agriculture, security, road infrastructure, education and health. Ordinary Abians care more about effective service delivery and less about individual glory of the leaders. Therefore, we must at all times, keep our eyes on the ball and realise that our call as leaders is to serve with dedication and sincerity.
It is a common temptation to want to shut out the ordinary people after winning an election. My advice would be that you do the opposite. Do not let yourself become hostage to a coterie of aides and advisers who will regularly fill your ears with what you want to hear which at times, may be the exact opposite of what is obtainable. While I admit that being accessible and open to hearing from everyone can be very challenging and distracting, I still think that it is worth it because that is how you know the true state of things in your domain. I would also recommend that you go one step further and hold regular engagements with stakeholders across the wards. Town hall meetings, community fora and attendance to community events should not only happen during electioneering campaigns but should be made part of our regular democratic practice.
In the New Abia, the people are at the centre of everything we do. This requires that leaders regularly listen to the public, allay their fears and demonstrate a certain readiness to show leadership at all times. The expectation is that the political culture of openness, firmness and responsiveness which we have adopted in the State shall cascade to the LGAs.
Beyond just being accessible to the public when required, we also want to see healthy rivalries amongst the local government mayors. You are encouraged to make the most of the body of advantages within your domain to achieve tangible results on relevant economic fronts. A few local government areas in this State have the required land mass and other supporting natural factors to become centres of excellence in various agricultural value chains. Others have peculiar advantages that can enable them thrive in small to medium-scale manufacturing, transportation and other functions that fall within the scope of responsibilities assigned to local government administrators by our constitution. The time to explore these possibilities in ways that create employment and generate wealth for our people has come.
Permit me to comment on the issue of political parties from where you emerged. Recall that at the beginning of this process, I had charged every interested contestant to join any party of their choice while encouraging Abia people to vote the best candidates irrespective of political parties. The reason is simple: I realised that a few parties have leadership crises that I didn’t think should be imported into this process. I also know that our people have always voted candidates and not necessarily parties. 2015 is clear proof as my carefully chosen candidates at that time won almost 50% of the house of assembly seats from a party that had not won a councillorship seat in the state prior to then.
Let me conclude by assuring you that the state shall be willing and ready to offer you every support you need to succeed. My office will always be open to guide you when required, so do not hesitate to reach out. May I remind you that you just like I are answerable to the people whose mandate we hold. I shall encourage you to do everything in your power to see that you do not fail our people.
Let me leave a word for the so-called opposition who are gathering in Abuja and elsewhere with the sole intention to deceive people and distract this government. They have perfected a strategy to churn out fake and sometimes real documents for false narratives and propaganda. Just like the Bible assures, because these gatherings are not of God, they will scatter! Do not take Abia people for granted. You have done this before and failed. What makes you think you will succeed this time given all the transformation that has happened in this state in less than 18 months? A word is enough for the wise!
This speech will be incomplete If I fail to acknowledge and appreciate the job done by the outgoing mayors who were appointed barely one year ago. The government and people of the state thank them most profusely for the excellent job that most of them did. They will continue to be part and parcel of this administration.
Once again, congratulations, and good luck as you return to your different local governments to take charge. Thank you for listening and may God bless you all.