Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Umuahia

A group of Abian State people advocating the deepening of good governance in their state has urged the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt Hon Benjamin Kalu, to stop inciting President Bola Ahmed against the state Governor Alex Otti.

The group under the aegis of Abians for Sustenance of Good Governance, made the call at a press conference in Umuahia at the weekend, saying that series of statements coming from Kalu in recent times were disconcerting.

The Deputy Speaker had, on two public fora, said that the Abia State governor has not deemed it necessary to acknowledge that President Tinubu has made it possible for him to have a steady inflow of humongous revenue.

He also criticised the manner Otti was managing the state resources, saying that the governor was not transparent and open in disclosing the revenue that accrues to the state.

But the leader of the ASGG, Hon Dannie Ubani, said at the press conference that the statements credited to Kalu were temperamental and unstatesmanlike outbursts.

He said: “A situation where supposed statesmen could deliberately fan the flames of conflicts between the state government and the presidency in furtherance of their selfish political ambitions at the expense of peace and stability should be condemned, and is hereby condemned.

“Inciting a non-existent war of attrition between the governor of the state and our very dear president with the vain aim of leveraging on it to further selfish political ambitions is very unpatriotic, and would be stoutly resisted by Ndi Abia.”

According to him, the Deputy Speaker was portraying the Otti administration as profligate in managing the state resources, thereby inciting the Abia people against their government.

He said that the allegations in reference “are heinous” irrespective of who is the accuser and the person making the allegations, hence such utterances “demand the interrogation of all well-informed and patriotic Abians.”

He noted that the “imaginary figures” being trumpeted by Kalu, as a way of setting up the governor against the Abia people, is cowardly and capable of igniting avoidable conflagration.”

Ubani appealed to all the political combatants in Abia State to sheathe their swords in order not to distract and derail the government from focusing on the ongoing transformation of the state.

He stated that if Abia politicians were bent on playing politics now, it should not be at the expense of the peace and stability that define the Abia State of today.

While he admitted that no man is infallible, Ubani said that Otti, being the chief servant of Abia State, “is not and cannot be beyond public scrutiny, and ASGG has subjected the allegations of financial impropriety to a crucible test of objectivity.”

The ASGG leader praised Otti for outstanding performance in the state so far, adding that the allegations of financial mismanagement could not be substantiated.

He said: “We have been able to interrogate the assertion that Abia appropriates an average of N38 billion every 28 days.

“From the statistical data available by FAAC, the total accruals to Abia State in the last FAAC update are N98 billion, 120 million only, which is a monthly average of 14 billion naira, as against the monthly N38 billion being touted by people who, by virtue of their positions, should know better.”

Ubani insisted that “a governor who has won back public confidence through the implementation of programmes and policies that have catalysed socio-economic growth cannot be justifiably said to be liable to financial malfeasance as alleged.

“Today, contrary to the rottenness and hopelessness of the past, all facets of Abia public life bear visible and undeniable multifaceted and unprecedented progress.”

To further justify the position of his group, Ubani cited the liquidation of “Abia State debt burden from a humongous sum of N138 billion as at May 29, 2023, to a manageable sum of N72 billion as at today, and that is a significant reduction of N66 billion.”

He also stated that the “ongoing caterpillar revolution” has resulted in massive construction of roads across the state, including federal roads.

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