32ND ANNIVERSARY: Things Gov. Alex Otti Must Do To Make Abia Better – Oby Ezekwesili Reveals
A former minister for education, Dr Oby Ezekwesili, has advised governor Alex Otti on necessary things to do to help him actualize his dream of a new Abia state.
She harped on the need to support and create an enabling environment that will allow the hugely talented Abians especially in Aba, to compete with the rest of the world and also encourage investors.
“Aba, the heartbeat of Abia state economic possibilities holds an important key to Africa making a stake for a significant portion of the cloth fashion industry. The scale of our ambition will determine whether the government of governor Alex Otti will take all necessary measures to remove the bottlenecks that sat in the way of the hugely talented people of Aba that are thriving within the limited support of an enabling environment to compete with the rest of the world. Whatever you do with these industries could make a good difference to our aspiration for prosperity’.
“The human talent of ndi Abia is not to be contested; all we need are sound policies.
“Sound policies must be complemented by a business environment that facilitates and not one that hinders” she said.
Speaking further, Ezekwesili noted that the era of corruption and waste of resources should be put behind and charged the state government to be prudent and ensure that every investment made is well thought out and would yield profitable results.
“Abia state must be prudent and make sure that for every dollar spent, there is as close a dollar value as possible. Abia state has no bandwidth for waste of resources. The previous wastes must be done away with. You cannot continue in waste; You must have an internal capacity to promptly analyse every investment option’.
“corruption must be brought to the minimum in Abia state through the reform of public procurement system, and reform of tax collection system” she advised.
Speaking on the challenges that have bedeviled Abia state for the past 24 years, Ezekwesili pointed; infrastructural deficits, high unemployment rate and poverty level which is of a critical concern.
She noted that amid the challenges facing the state, Abia boasts untapped potential across sectors that could propel the state towards a more prosperous future through agriculture, commerce and entrepreneurship.
“our industrial capabilities lay the foundation for growth, with industries capable of fostering job creation and economic vitality” she added.
Ezekwesili noted that the governor and the entire Abians have a tasking job ahead to steer the state towards a new era, however, transparency, accountability and responsiveness are necessities to achieve progress.
“we are tasked with a collective responsibility to steer Abia towards a new era. The journey ahead will be demanding but it is a journey that holds promise. Our journey towards progress requires a new narrative of governance rooted in transparency, accountability and responsiveness” she said.
