TodayPrice

Tag: Governor Abia State Dr. Alex Otti

  • Otti inaugurates Abia Electricity Board,vows to pull Umuahia out of national grid

    Otti inaugurates Abia Electricity Board,vows to pull Umuahia out of national grid

    UMUAHIA- Abia state Governor,Dr. Alex Otti has inaugurated a five man board of the Abia State Electricity Regulatory Agency, ASERA, with a charge for the agency to complete the negotiations with the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company ,EEDC, and acquire the Umuahia ringed – fence area.

    The membership of the board include; Mr Onyegbule Emeka – Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Mr Ikowu Ukwu – Executive Director, Engr. Iheanyi Eze – Executive Director, Onwuegbule Kareem Eberechukwu – Non Executive Director and Dr. Joy Oti – Non Executive Director.

    Inaugurating the members of the board at the Government House, Umuahia, Otti vowed to pull Umuahia from the national grid, stressing that he is determined to ensure that power problem in the city is solved.

    He said; “We are at the final stages of negotiations with EEDC, the idea for us is to acquire the Umuahia ringed-fence and that includes Umuahia North, Umuahia South, Ikwuano, Bende, Ohafia, Isuikwuato, Umunneochi and Arochukwu.

    “So, we are almost done and by the time negotiations are completed, payment would be made and we will pull Umuahia out of EEDC.

    “The original agreement with Geometric before the amendment of the law was that any excess capacity would be sent to the national grid.

    “Our plan right now, because Geometric has a stored capacity of 188 megawatts of energy, though they have three turbines with the capacity of 141 megawatts, the fourth turbine should be on the way any moment from now.

    “At maximum load, we believe that Aba ringed-fence should not require more than a 100 megawatts. So, there is a balance of 88 megawatts.

    “Our proposal is for it to be wheeled into Umuahia rather than sending it to the national grid. If we have 88 megawatts, at least we can guarantee steady supply of power.”

    He noted that industrialization cannot happen without power and assured that electricity is central to the agenda of his administration.

    The Governor narrated how he supported the Geometric power company to come on stream having been on the drawing board for 20 years before its commissioning.

    He assured that the members of the board were selected on merit, adding that he is confident that they would perform, especially as they have an experienced Commissioner for Power and Public Utilities, Mr. Ikechukwu Monday, to work with.

    Responding on behalf of his colleagues, the Executive Director of ASERA, Engr. Iheanyi Eze promised to achieve the Governor’s vision about electricity and deliver quality and affordable power for the people.

    He thanked the Governor for the confidence reposed in the board and assured of a robust customer relations system in the agency.

  • I’m closer to Abuja than defectors  —  Alex Otti laughs off defection rumour

    I’m closer to Abuja than defectors  —  Alex Otti laughs off defection rumour

    Governor Alex Otti of Abia State has dismissed the speculation that he’s planning to dump the Labour Party for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

    Governor Otti’s rumored defection plan swirled recently following the ‘tsunami defection’ that took over the Peoples Democratic Party’s age-long structure in Delta State.

    During their official reception ceremony, former Governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa, said he and his successor, Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, joined the APC to connect Delta State to Aso Rock, the seat of power.

    However, in an interview with Arise Television, the Abia State Governor laughed off the idea of joining the ruling party to get closer to the president.

    Otti said he did not need to defect to the APC to get closer to the seat of power, adding that everybody did not need to join the ruling party.

    He said, “Governor Otti is not decamping and my party is not on shaky ground.”

    When asked if he needed to decamp to get close to the centre like Okowa and Oborevwori did, Otti said, “I am even closer to the centre than some of them.”

    “This is Democracy, and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu held on to his Alliance for Democracy (AD), Action Congress (AC) Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), before becoming APC. If he was (defection), he won be President today. Sometimes, you have to also stand for something,” Otti said.

    Given the leadership crisis in the LP, Otti is not certain about his future in the party. When asked if he would ever leave the Labour Party, the governor said, “I am not God. I cannot say if there’s no LP tomorrow.”

    In his political journey, Governor Otti has moved from the PDP to the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and then to the APC before joining the LP, the party that brought him power in 2023.

  • Otti to revisit Abia pension arrears

    Otti to revisit Abia pension arrears

    Abia State Governor Alex Otti has promised to reconsider his position concerning the controversial pension arrears of Abia retirees.

    Otti made the promise while responding to a passionate appeal from Rev. Ernest Onyukwu who preached during the 80th birthday ceremony of Senator Chris Adighije at the Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia, FMC Chapel on Saturday.

    The cleric had appealed to the governor to take a second look at his position and show mercy on the senior citizens.

    Otti blamed the leadership of pensioners for resorting to blackmail after signing a Memorandum of Agreement with the government on what to be paid to write off the backlog of arrears accumulated by his predecessors.

    Recall that after Otti had paid the accumulated arrears, the leadership of pensioners said they never signed to forfeit their gratuities.

    The leadership of the pensioners claimed they signed under duress but the governor said they became mischievous after opposition politicians incited them to blackmail him.

    Abia pensioners now receive pension along with workers in active service on the 28th of every month.

  • Otti approves N1bn for Abia health insurance scheme

    Otti approves N1bn for Abia health insurance scheme

    UMUAHIA—Governor Alex Otti, has approved the sum of N1 billion for Abia State Health Insurance Scheme, following the approval for the formal rolling out of the scheme by the State Executive Council.

    This is as the Governor has approved the appointment of Dr. Emmanuel Mereibeole, who retired recently from the Federal Ministry of Aviation as a Permanent Secretary, as Special Adviser on Projects to oversee the Abia Airport project.

    Commissioner for Information, Prince Okey Kanu; and his Health Counterpart, Professor Enoch Uche, disclosed these while briefing newsmen on the outcome of the State Executive Council meeting.

    The insurance scheme, according to them, is to provide access to affordable healthcare services for Abia workers.

    Kanu said: “This is one of the health schemes that underscores the high premium the administration places on the health sector.

    “It’s a scheme that will grant Abia workers and indeed Abia citizenry access to affordable healthcare services upon  roll-out.”

    Contributing, the Health Commissioner said the scheme was meant to address the healthcare needs of Abia workers and their dependants.

    He explained that N500 million out of the N1 billion approved by the Governor would be paid in the first tranche while the balance would be released after six months.

    Professor Uche said the Governor had directed that workers in the state be sensitized about the scheme for three months to enable them to embrace and key into it.

    He disclosed that 54,000 persons had enrolled in healthcare insurance for vulnerable groups.

    “As you all know, the basic healthcare provider fund, which provides for the vulnerable groups is already on. As we speak over 54,000 enrollees in that basic health insurance fund are already benefiting from the scheme”.

    On funding the scheme, Prof. Uche said: “By law,  every civil servant is supposed to contribute five percent of his basic salary to the insurance scheme, whereas the state will contribute 10 percent but the Governor has approved that the state will pay 12.5 percent to start with for the first six months whereas each civil servant will contribute 2.5 percent.”

    Meanwhile, the Information Commissioner said that “Project Ekwueme,”, a project that involves the construction of 200 primary health centers across the 184 wards of the state, had recorded 60 percent success.

    “What that means is that very soon, the project will be completed and ready for commissioning”, he declared.

    He also said that the Ministry of Power and Public Utilities was making progress on water projects across the state, noting that the various ongoing water projects are at various stages of completion.

    “I want to inform you that the water project they embarked upon at Aro Ajatakiri is  100 percent completed.  The other water projects they embarked upon in Aro Achara in Isiala Ngwa North Local Government and at Umuetigha   Nvosi in Isiala Ngwa South Local Government Area have  reached advanced stages of completion.”

    Kanu added that the Ministry had made progress with the  Water Supply and Sanitation Hygiene (WASH) Programme which involves the construction of modern toilet facilities in order to discourage open defecation.

    On the ongoing recruitment of teachers in the state, he explained that the portal which was reopened from 8th to 12 March,  was to give fresh opportunities to some of the applicants “who had issues with the upload of their bio-data, phone numbers, LGAs, and other necessary information.”

    He said the newly appointed Adviser on Projects, Dr Mereibeole, had served as Chief Policy Adviser to the  Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development.

    According to him, Dr Mereibeole amongst other duties, will oversee the Abia Airport project.

    Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Elder Goodluck Ubochi; and the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media & Publicity, Mr Ferdinand Ekeoma, were present at the press briefing.

  • Abia pensioners’ leaders are dishonest  —  Otti

    Abia pensioners’ leaders are dishonest  —  Otti

    Abia State Governor Dr. Alex Otti has accused the leadership of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners, NUP, of dishonesty regarding the pension arrears owed to them by previous administrations in the state.

    Otti had accused the NUP in the state of reneging on the agreement they allegedly signed to forfeit the pension arrears owed to them by past administrations.

    However, Elder Chukwuemeka Irondi, Chairman of the NUP in Abia State, admitted that the Otti administration has been updated in paying monthly pensions but denied that they signed an agreement with the state government to forfeit their salary arrears.

    He alleged that the state government invited them to a late-night meeting, during which an agreement was imposed on them.

    The Governor,while speaking at the weekend, described the pensioners’ leaders as dishonest and vowed never to call them to any negotiation again.

    He said,” Did you see that they signed the Memorandum of Agreement? I saw a newspaper report where they said they didn’t sign. So, you can see that we are dealing with a dishonest set of leaders. The pensioners are honest people; their leaders are dishonest. And we don’t reward dishonesty.

    “If you made a mistake, don’t say I didn’t sign; don’t say I was deceived to sign. You went to school; you served through. Somebody owed them. I never owed them. They kept quiet all these years, some for 10 years. And somebody came out to say, “I want to clear this backlog,” and they were excited. I have told this story several times.

    “So, once you start from a dishonest point of view, I cannot deal with you. If you like, twist the question 100 times, and I will not deal with you. I will not deal with them because they are very dishonest people. The pensioners are happy because they were paid.

    “These people signed; they had walked away from everything. But I said no, it is not fair, out of my own magnanimity. I’m not going to be discouraged because a few people are dishonest.

    ‘I have investigated it and found that PDP is behind it; their lawyer is a PDP lawyer. If they are not stupid, why would they hire somebody who owed for 10 years and disparage somebody who offered to pay? Genuine pensioners are happy everywhere, but contractors who feel they can make money are in it

    “I will not pay, will not deal with them. I have finished with them. Since they have an option, why can’t they go to court? The question to ask them is, why didn’t they go to court in the last 10 years? So, I think we have sufficiently dealt with the matter. I will not deal with it again. If somebody is unhappy that he is being paid 100% of his pension monthly, he should return the ones he has been paid and continue wearing black.

    “Let’s move on. Two days ago, I read a report in Vanguard newspaper where they said they never signed anything. I said yes, we are getting there. Before now, they said they were deceived. Genuine pensioners have disowned them. They want me to call them to a negotiation, but I will never call them. They should return all they have collected and declare a dispute. Then, we deal with the dispute; you don’t collect money and turn back to say you disagree. It is dishonesty, and I don’t deal with dishonest people.”

    Otti’s statement on pensioners insensitive, reckless — PDP

    Reacting to the Governor’s statement describing the pensioners’ leaders as dishonest, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Abia state chapter, condemned it as not only reckless and insensitive but also deprofoundlyisrespectful to senior citizens who have dedicated their productive years to serving the state and are now being deprived of their legitimate entitlements.

    The party urged the Governor to apologize to the pensioners and fulfil his campaign promise to pay the arrears owed to them.

    The PDP said, ”We find it necessary to ask a fundamental question: Who is truly dishonest? Is it the pensioners who are simply demanding what is rightfully theirs, or a Governor who claimed to have cleared all outstanding pensions, a narrative aggressively pushed by his government and its agents? As the Governor

    once boasted, If all pension arrears have been settled, why are pensioners still crying out for their payments?

    “It is on record that during his election campaign, Governor Alex Otti solemnly promised to clear all outstanding pension arrears once elected. However, rather than fulfilling that promise, he has resorted to blackmailing and maligning the same pensioners who voted for him, subjecting them to a fraudulent demand to forgo or surrender their entitlements to the government.

    “If this is not a blatant act of executive dishonesty, then what is?”