A Chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Alex Otti, has stated that the problems of Abia State have up-scaled to a frightening height more than it was in 2014 when he first ‘accepted the call of his people to liberate Abia.’

Otti had in 2014, declared interest in the 2015 gubernatorial election in Abia State under the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA).

 

Otti who resigned from his banking profession, wielded the party’s gubernatorial flag in 2014 and 2019 respectively’

 

Declaring for the 2023 governorship position on Easter Sunday, April 17, 2022, at his campaign office located at Bank road Umuahia, Otti listed the long lingering problems of the state as; complete breakdown of infrastructure, increase in inequality, non- payment of wages of workers, high rate of unemployment, weak economy, corruption, abject poverty, poor healthcare and educational facilities.

 

“I, therefore, stand before you on this holy day to declare my interest, once again, to serve you as Governor of this state from 29th May, 2023 under the platform of the All Progressive Congress, APC.”

 

“The problems which informed my decision to respond to the call of our people in 2014 for their liberation has now taken a new and a frightening dimension – complete breakdown of infrastructure, increase in inequality, non- payment of wages of workers, high rate of unemployment, weak economy, corruption, abject poverty and poor healthcare and educational facilities.”

 

“Now, we cannot blame historic forces beyond our control for these challenges, but the wrong leadership choices we had made as a state, elder statesmen and citizens.”

 

This is the third time Dr. Alex Otti is contesting for the governorship seat of Abia state.

 

According to the governorship hopeful, the struggle was motivated by the zeal, conviction and courage to make sacrifices for Abians and liberate them.

 

“Majority of you already know the story of this struggle. It’s the story of a struggle motivated by sacrifice and sustained by tenacity. It’s a struggle inspired by conviction and advanced by courage.”

 

“Venturing into the murky waters of Abia politics from such professional background was not an alluring adventure for the faint hearted, so the struggle was ab initio not motivated by the quest for affluence, luxury or comfort, but by an altruistic desire to audaciously dare and defeat the albatross of leadership ignominy that had suffocated the economic development of our dear state for a very long time, and made us a laughing stock in the comity of states”.

 

Dr. Alex Otti lamented the unemployment rate in Abia State which according to him is currently at 51% against the National average of 33%.

Otti noted that he is aware of the challenges facing the state, however he promised to utilize the resources in the state to remedy the situation.

 

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Some of the plans of the aspirant includes;

 

Pursuing economic policies for shared prosperity and immediate attention on youth employment.

 

to create quality education for development, modernization and social mobility.

 

to ensure the modernization of agriculture and its value chains to take millions out of poverty and ensure food security in the state.

 

to revive moribund industries and create new ones to generate employment and manufacture goods,

 

to support the establishment of modern healthcare facilities and guarantee the healthcare needs of the people.

 

to deploy modern infrastructure to aid ease of doing business, particularly in Aba, the commercial nerve centre of the state.

 

to move Abia from its present unenviable position of one of the dirtiest states in the country to the cleanest state

 

to restore honour and integrity in public service by motivating, attracting and retaining the best.

 

to tackle corruption in the state.

 

to prioritize the protection of lives and property.

 

to respect the principles of separation of powers between the executive, legislatures and judiciary as well as respect the rights of citizens.

 

READ ALEX OTTI’S FULL DECLARATION SPEECH: CLICK