Politics

OTTI: TOO SMOOTH FOR THE OPPOSITION By AProf Chukwuemeka Ifegwu Eke I have watched the political temperature in Abia State rise steadily as the 2027 elections approach. I have also watched the pattern of alliances, accusations, lawsuits, press conferences and counter-attacks surrounding Governor Alex Otti. After following these developments closely, I keep returning to one conclusion: Otti may simply be too smooth for the opposition. That statement does not mean that a governor should be immune from criticism. Democracy requires scrutiny. But criticism is more useful when it rests on facts, policies and measurable outcomes rather than allegations repeated until…

WHEN ARGUMENT FAILS, THEY ATTACK THE PROFESSION I had actually decided not to dignify most of these rigmarole responses with an answer because many of them are built more on excitement than substance. But this one dragged my profession into it. So let me start there. 😂😂😂 The attempt to diminish me because I am a professor is particularly amusing. Yes, professors have committed offences before. Doctors have committed offences. Lawyers have committed offences. Judges have committed offences. Politicians have committed offences. What exactly is the argument? That because one professor somewhere committed electoral fraud, therefore every professor who disagrees…

ABIA’S SMOOTH OPERATOR A Political Satire on Alex Otti and the Abia Opposition “He’s a smooth operator…” Sade sang it in 1984. And as I look at Abia politics today, I am beginning to wonder whether Abia has found its own version four decades later. Not the lover moving from city to city in dark glasses, but a banker-turned-governor moving through Abia politics with an unusual method: smile at the opponent, shake his hand, refuse his invitation, appoint his wife if she is qualified, collect some of his supporters, and continue working. That, to me, is the Alex Otti version…

A Forensic Accounting Investigation of Abia State Capital Expenditure, Asset Balances, and Infrastructure Delivery We did not rush to publish our response when allegations concerning the finances of the Abia State Government began circulating. That restraint was deliberate. In matters involving public finance, billions of naira, capital projects and the reputation of public institutions, responsible analysis cannot be conducted through screenshots, political sound bites or hurried conclusions. We subjected the claims to due diligence, consultations, examination of the relevant financial statements and budget-performance records, and inquiries concerning the physical projects to which some of the figures relate. We also considered…