Only committed, capable leadership can fix Abia – Otti

…Promises to make Abia health tourism destination as he emerges LP guber candidate

From Boniface Okoro, Umuahia

The Governorship candidate of Labour Party (LP) in Abia State, Dr. Alex Otti, says only committed and capable leadership could fix the challenges facing the state.

Otti who made the assertion after emerging the governorship candidate of LP during the governorship primary election held in Umuahia on Wednesday, June 8, 2022, promised to make Abia the health tourism hub of the country.

Otti, the sole aspirant in the primary, secured 454 votes to emerge unopposed in an Option A4 election model. The National Vice Chairman, South East of the party, Chief Innocent Okeke, served as the Returning Officer during the election.

Otti said he already knew most of the deep rooted challenges confronting the state which he listed to include infrastructural decay, collapse of health and education system; unemployment, poverty insecurity and non-payment of salaries and pensions.

The renowned Banker and former Managing Director of defunct Diamond Bank, assured that within his first year, he would clear the arrears of salaries and pension owed workers and pensioners.

“I consider this a matter of urgent importance because of my knowledge of the way the economy works and my understanding of the importance of the civil service in the economic development of a state. I would ensure that the inglorious practice of non-payment of salaries and pensions would be a thing of the past,” Otti told his excited supporters and LP faithful.

He said he was aware that many would doubt the possibility of achieving the promise of clearing the salary and pension arrears considering the humongous nature of the problem, but said “I want to assure you that the task is one that can and will be accomplished, by any determined and capable leadership. All that it requires are managerial acumen, high sense of duty, transparency and honesty. All these I assure you, I am blessed with.”

Promising to make Abia the health tourism destination if given the mandate to govern Abia in 2023, Otti said his administration would start by halting the lingering decay and deterioration in the state’s health sector by upgrading existing major hospitals with modern equipment and attracting experts from the country and abroad required for modern healthcare delivery.

“Thereafter, we would move quickly to establish a medical city where medical research institutions and teaching hospitals together with specialist hospitals would be established,” he said.

He blamed what he described as the sorry state of Abia’s health sector on government’s failure to invest and sanitise the sector. “Our experiences with the outbreak of Covid-19 and the recent withdrawal of accreditation for our only teaching hospital Abia State University Teaching Hospital (ABSUTH), point to the current government’s lack of will to pay attention to this all important sector,” the LP standard bearer remarked.

Furthermore, he said that if he becomes the governor, his administration would embark on massive investment in infrastructure to attract investment which would in turn, create one of the platforms for massive employment and general economic prosperity for the people; drive  a holistic policy of industrialisation in each zone of the state as one of the ways to reduce rural-urban migration and insecurity while also creating employment; revive agriculture “with a modern approach and mindset,” for food sufficiency and security, job creation and revenue generation for government.

Otti promised to accord top priority to education “from the perspective of what the world needs today and tomorrow,” and ensure free and accessible education in primary and secondary schools.

“For this policy to make sense, we would ensure massive investment in the educational sector. These investments shall be made in the areas of infrastructure and research, while prioritising the welfare of teachers at all levels as a way of extracting the best from them,” he hinted.

Otti who said he would not collect salary if elcted but donate same to charity, added that his manifestoes would be realized with the participation of all Abians, ensuring “good governance, devoid of greed and corruption,”  and appealed to Abia professionals to “see our incoming Administration as a call to return home and join in nation building.”

Expressing optimism that he would realize his governorship ambition on the Labour Party platform, Otti said he was excited “because Labour Party is a natural home of the working class, the pensioners, students and indeed, all those who seek the kind of leadership that guarantees development, peace and justice in society.”

“The symbol of our party and her central focus is people. This demands service to humanity and places a burden of honour, honesty and altruism on our shoulders.

“I therefore urge you to join me as we prepare for the most crucial phase of this project, which is the general election. It is only when we secure victory that we will be able to realise our dreams and rescue our people from the Golgotha of decay to which for decades, they have been banished by unconscionable and visionless leadership,” he said.