Stephanie Clems, Umuahia

eAbia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti has said that, his successor in 2031 will be better than himself, adding he was laying a solid foundation for the development of the state.

Governor Otti stated this during the grande reception service organised in his honour by the Assemblies of God Church, Okaiuga – Nkwoegwu, Umuahia North LGA.

The governor said that he was just starting, and the time for the aggressive development of Abia State was then, adding that the curse that had held the State down has been broken.

“We have just started. We are not three years yet. So, you can imagine what will happen by the time we are done in 2031.

“So, you know there is a time and a season for everything. So, what we have started is the time for the aggressive development of Abia State.

“The news I have for Abia people is that we have broken that curse that held us down and whoever is going to succeed me will be better than me.

” So, when people think we are going to go back to them, they must be dreaming, we’ve moved,” Gov. Otti said.

Governor Otti said that, he believed in Psalms chapter 62 verse 11, which declared that, “God has spoken once, twice, have I heard this? That power belongs to God.

“So, you can do everything you want to do but, if it wasn’t God’s time, it will not work and when it’s God’s time, even if you are sleeping, God will wake you up,” he said.

.On their request for provision of a bus for evangelism and land for prayer camp, governor Otti confirmed to them that they would receive a hummer bus this week, courtesy of Prince, Dr. Arthur Eze, one of their guests.

He also directed the Chief of Staff, Pastor Caleb Ajagba, Ph.D, to meet with the Church leadership and work out modalities for securing a land for them as requested.

The State Chief Executive, who appreciated Churches in the State for the support given to his administration, thanked Assemblies of God Church for the reception organised for him.

Earlier in his speech, the District Superintendent, Assemblies of God Church, Jerusalem District, Rev. Dr Kenneth Ogbudu described the reception ceremony as a significant moment of history, and appreciation.

He said that Dr Alex Otti is a transformational leader, whose emergence has redefined governance in Abia State. He noted that, many administrations have come and gone but Governor Otti’s tenure represents a clear and commendable departure from the past.

“For the first time in our State’s history, governance is driven by competence, transparency, accountability, visible impact, and more promises and verifiable results.

“Under your (Gov. Otti’s) leadership, Abia State has witnessed a bold and deliberate restoration of public infrastructure – roads abandoned for decades have been reconstructed and reopened, “Connecting communities, easing transportation, stimulating commerce, and restoring the dignity of both urban and rural environments” Rev. Ogbudu said.

Rev. Ogbudu went further to note that the renewal of critical road networks across Aba and beyond by Governor Otti has revived economic activities and repositioned Abia State as a credible destination for investment.

He also said that beyond infrastructure, the administration has introduced “a new culture of fiscal discipline and prudent resource management.

“”Salaries and pensions are now paid with regularity and respect, restoring hope and dignity to the workers and retirees who were once forgotten. “For the first time since the creation of Abia State, public funds are being managed with transparency, accountability and confidence.

“Your excellency has also demonstrated uncommon courage in institutional reforms, cleaning up public systems, strengthening governance structures, and insisting that public office must serve the people rather than personal interests,” Rev. Ogbudu maintained.

The servant of God used the opportunity to request the Governor to provide them with a Hummer bus to support evangelism and the allocation of land for a prayer village for the Church.

The wife of the Governor, Mrs Priscilla Otti, the member representing Ikwuano/ Umuahia Federal Constituency, Hon. Obi Aguocha, Deputy Speaker of the State House of Assembly and other members, Chief of Staff to the Governor, Pastor Caleb Ajagba Ph.D, Commissioner for Transport Dr Chimezie Ukaegbu, Special Advisers and Senior Special Assistants to the Governor, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information, Sir Chris Onwuegbu among others were present at the reception service.

Stephanie Clems, Umuahia

Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti, OFR, has signed ithe 2026 budget estimate of N1.016 trillion into law.

The appropriation law of One trillion, sixteen Billion, Two Hundred and Twenty-Eight Million, Seventy-Two Thousand, Six Hundred- and Fifty-One-Naira, Ninety-Nine kobo (N1,016,228,072,651.99), projected to be raised and spent in the 2026 fiscal year was presented to the state house of assembly a few weeks ago.

.Assenting to the appropriation bill, presented to him by Speaker Emmanuel Emeruwa of the Abia State House of Assembly, on Monday, December 29th, Governor Otti assured that his government would implement the budget to the letter.

Governor Otti thanked members of the State House of Assembly for the expeditious passage of the appropriation bill and thanked his team for putting the document together before it was presented to the House.

“Today, we have gathered to sign the 2026 Appropriation Bill into law, and that has just happened moments ago. “I want to start by thanking the team who worked very hard to produce the Appropriation Bill, and dispatched it to the House, but more thanks go to the House for expeditiously attending to the Bill, crunching the numbers, spending sleepless nights to ensure quick passage of the Bill,” gov. Otti said.

.The Governor thanked the House for their hard work, expressing joy that the State House of Assembly pays attention to details, and justifies their thoroughness in going through the budget.

“I want to thank you for the hard work, it’s interesting because I kept engaging, and I’m very glad that this House pays attention to details, not just a House that would pass a bill without asking questions. “I’m not unaware of the engagements going back and forth between the Executive team and the Legislative team, and that is what democracy should be about. “Questions should be asked, and numbers should be scrutinised. Two good heads, they say, are better than one. So, that this Bill took a little bit of time to pass is also a plus.

“It shows that some work was being done. It also puts the executive on its toes to ensure that it continues to up their game, to produce numbers that can be vouched for. “That is what we have just signed into law and trust me, the numbers did not change, at least the major numbers. The total appropriation remains ₦1.016 trillion. That was the number we churned out here after several sleepless nights,” he said.

The State Chief Executive further informed the gathering that the allocations; capital versus recurrent, remain the same, which shows the direction of the government.

“This is a government that believes that we need to empower our people legitimately. Our definition of empowerment is creating the enabling environment for our people to do their business and do their stuff and then, of course, also implementing and creating social infrastructure in terms of health, education, and environmental issues. Having our place clear, other than the roads, the bridges and the other hardcore infrastructure”, Gov. Otti maintained.

Presenting the appropriation bill earlier, the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Emmanuel Emeruwa said that the achievements of Governor Otti are being acknowledged globally, adding that the legislative arm of the State is pleased to be part of the acceleration of projects in the 2026 fiscal year.

He said that Governor Otti has changed the narratives in the State within 30 months in office and assured the Governor of the support of the House of Assembly.

The Deputy Speaker, Rt. Hon. Austin Okezie and other members of the State House of Assembly, the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Commissioners, Special Advisers and the Clerk of the State House of Assembly among others were present at the Budget Signing Ceremony.

Stephanie Clems, Umuahia

Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti, OFR, has said that his intention in building new facilities for the Correctional Centres in the state was to reduce congestion in the facilities.

Governor Otti stated this on Friday, November 21st in his office, when the new Zonal Coordinator of the Nigerian Correctional Services, Owerri, Zone E and Assistant Controller General of Corrections , Dr Ngozi Amanze paid him a familiarisation visit.

In the words of the governor, “Our intention when we decided to build new facilities (for the Correctional Centres) is to reduce congestion and reduce the temptation to do more crime in there.

“Even when people go there, we also want them to be corrected and reformed, rather than becoming hardened criminals”, Gov. Otti said.

Governor Otti, who affirmed his administration’s commitment to improving correctional facilities in the state, recalled that shortly after assuming office, he met a former Kaduna lawmaker, Sen. Shehu Sani, who told him he would only visit Abia again after the completion of renovations at the Aba Correctional Centre, where he was once detained during the Abacha regime.

He said that the encounter prompted him to send a team to assess the condition of the facility and their visit revealed a complaint from Correctional Services over encroachment by members of the host community.

The Governor said that he had in the last 2 years attempted to grant pardon to some inmates as a way of decongesting the facilities, but could not find those with minor offences and requested her to look for those with minor offences for possible pardon.”A lot of people were there for murder, for serious offences.

We repeated the same thing in December 2024. We still couldn’t find anything. “We hope that you will help us look again. We don’t want the number to increase, because when you have a large number of your population in those facilities, it means that crime is increasing,” Gov. Otti stated.

On the challenges raised by the Coordinator, Gov. Otti said that the government would make it a fist charge in strengthening medical services in the facilities and directed the Commissioner for Health to assess the centres and explore the establishment of functional primary health care centre.

“I noticed some of the points you raised about education, skilled acquisition, medication and medical facilities. “I don’t know how it will work, but where you have such a large number of people, you should have working medical facilities even if it’s not a hospital, it could be a primary health care centre to attend to the inmates. We will try and support you with that,” he said.

The Governor thanked the Service for its cooperation and acknowledged the coordinator’s remarks on the ongoing reforms in the correctional centres in Abia.

Speaking earlier, the Zonal Coordinator of the Nigerian Correctional Services, Owerri, Zone E, Dr Ngozi Amanze, who disclosed that she came to familiarise with the Governor as the new Zonal Coordinator, commended the Governor for his significant interventions that have strengthened security and improved conditions in Correctional facilities across the State.

She listed the fortified perimeter wall at the Aba Correctional Centre, installation of solar lights, and the construction of a new storey building with six cells as some of the interventions of Governor Otti, that have boosted security and staff confidence.

She noted that congestion remains a major concern across Correctional Centres in the country, adding that the new cell blocks, once completed, would significantly expand the capacity of the Aba facility and reduce overcrowding.

The Special Adviser to the Governor on Security, Navy Commander MacDonald Uba (Rtd) and other security aides of the Governor were present at the visit.