Don’t undermine my govt., Otti tells  Permanent Secretaries

… orders freezing of state accounts, sacks boards

From Boniface Okoro, Umuahia

The  Governor of Abia State , Dr. Alex Otti, has told Permanent Secretaries in the state that his administration would welcome opposing views and constructive engagements suggesting ways of doing things right.

Addressing the Permanent Secretaries in the state during his first familiarization meeting with them, Otti, however, warned that he would not hesitate to sanction anyone found to be undermining his government.

A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Kazie Uko, disclosed that at the meeting held at Dr. Michael Okpara Auditorium in Umuahia on Tuesday, May 30, 2023, the Governor said he called the meeting to get firsthand information on how the Permanent Secretaries were functioning.

Uko quoted the Governor as saying: “”I must tell you that you’re the engine room of the government and that’s why I thought that the first meeting that I will hold will be with all of you. This is a familiarisation meeting, where I will listen to you and get to understand what you do; get to understand how you do it and any help or support you require.

“I want to congratulate all of us for the transitioning to a new administration. Every four years elections happen and winners get sworn in. In most places, those who lost become opposition. So, being that we’re all winners, I believe that we won’t have opposition. But just in case there’s opposition, it is also part of governance and democracy.

“We welcome opposition. Constructive engagement is also welcome. Disagreeing with us is part of the business. You can never know it all. If you have an opinion, feel free to express it.

The Governor said he was not worried by the fact that many of them belong to different political leanings but he would not tolerate attempts to undermine the new government in place now.

“I do know that a lot of you would have different political persuasions and alliances and allegiance that is not a problem. But what will be the problem is if you begin to undermine the government that you serve and when we notice that, we will not waste time to act because this is a government that must work and anything that stands in the way,  we will get it out,” he said.

Otti also assured the Permanent secretaries that his administration does not harbour any witch-hunting agenda. “We will not witch-hunt people and we will not deal with people because of their persuasions, whether it is ethnic, religious and all that. At the end of the day, it is the interest of the state that is paramount,” he said.

The Governor demanded transparency in the conduct of government business from the Permanent Secretaries, as he directed them to take charge until a new set of commissioners were appointed by the new government. 

“You will begin to function as commissioners until new commissioners are appointed. I’m sure you understand what I’m saying, that is, that government is a continuum. So ensure you take over and begin to run your different ministries and by the time new commissioners come, you will handover to them,” he said.

He told the gathering that he meant every bit of what he said in his inaugural speech, stressing, “I mean them from A-Z. So things will begin to change.”

The Permanent Secretaries, Uko said, were led by the Head of Service, Sir Onyii Wamah, to the meeting attended by the Deputy Governor, Engr Ikechukwu Emetu, and some team members of the new government.

The Permanent Secretaries congratulated Dr. Otti on his inauguration and successful assumption of office.

Recall that Governor Otti was sworn in on Monday, May 29, 2023, as the 5th democratically-elected Governor of Abia.

In another development , the governor has directed the immediate freezing of all accounts of the Abia State Government and those of its agencies domiciled in every bank and financial institutions across the State and the Federation.

Otti, in a statement issued by his media office on Monday, May 29, 2023, said with this notice, all banks and other financial institutions in the country “are directed to immediately cease from honouring any cheque, document, instrument or directive of any kind not expressly approved by or emanating from him.”

Similarly, the Governor has directed the immediate dissolution of all boards of the Abia State Government’s agencies and parastatals and subsequently ordered the chief executives of these organisations to hand over to those next in line to them.