#Endbadgovernance: Gov. Otti applauds citizens for non participation, promises to fix road

Stephanie Clems, Umuahia

Abia State Governor Dr. Alex Otti, OFR has thanked Abia citizens for heeding his plea not to join the hardship protest which has resulted to the loss of lives and destruction of property in parts of the country.

The governor showed his gratitude on Saturday, 3rd August while observing the sabbath worship at the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, No 1 School Road, in Aba South Conference of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church.

A press statement signed by the chief press secretary to the governor, Ukoha Njoku says governor Otti had on two occasions within the week appealed to citizens not to join the protest.

First time was when he received Mr. Peter Obi, the Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 Presidential election where they spoke to the media after a private breakfast meeting while the second was through a state broadcast he made a day before the protest.

On both occasions, he acknowledged the people’s right to peaceful protest to air their grievances and at the same time expressed worry that the protest may be hijacked by hoodlums and enemies of the progress the State is making under his administration.

Addressing the congregation who were so excited of having him worship with them, Governor Otti said, “I want to use this opportunity to thank you and Abia people who listened to my plea not to come out, pour into the roads and disrupt services and activities and probably visit mayhem on the people, the reason is not because things are not difficult, far from it.

I recognize how difficult things are today, but at the same time, there is a saying that two wrongs cannot make a right. I also do know that a lot of our people live by the day, some are traders, some are Keke riders, some are barbers, and some are taxi drivers.

These people put food on the table on the basis of what they earn that particular day.”

Governor Otti noted that disrupting the activities of those whose delay bread depends on going out daily in the name of protest will end up worsening the problem the protesters are trying to solve.

“My Plea was that we can always sit down to discuss and I want to thank Abia people for heeding that call. It does not mean that we don’t have rights to protest but there are different ways of protesting and I think that the authorities had even listened to you and heard what you did not say.

“You know, it is easy to hear what you are saying but I can assure you that our government has heard what you did not say,” he said.

The Governor also announced to the delight of the already excited congregants that School Road in Aba will soon be fixed. “As I was coming, I saw that this road (School Road) is in a very bad condition. Very soon, the road will be fixed”, Governor Otti said.

He encouraged the church members to always count their blessings and focus more on the positive things God has done for them.

Governor Otti thanked the Church for their support since 2015 that he stepped out to contest election and for the support they are giving his administration. He urged them to continue to remember him and the government in their prayers daily.

In a Sermon titled “Living out the Christian Slogan”, the Resident Pastor, Pastor Ifeanyichukwu Nwaoguikpe said that God brought everyone to this earth for a particular purpose or mission. He emphasized that Christians are called to preach the gospel of everlasting life and the second coming of Jesus Christ as recorded in the Bible.

The ministers of the church prayed for the Governor, his entourage and the State.