Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has once again criticized the previous administration led by former Governor Okezie Ikpeazu, accusing it of financial mismanagement and lack of results.
Speaking on Wednesday during a thanksgiving and carnival at Umuagbai Secondary School in Aba, organized to celebrate the completion of the Port Harcourt Road and other local infrastructure projects, Otti alleged that ₦9.8 billion was paid to a contractor in 2017 for the reconstruction of the Port Harcourt Road, but the project was never completed.
“In 2017, they awarded the Port Harcourt Road project for ₦9.8 billion and fully paid the contractor. Yet, the road remained undone,” the governor stated. “Today, people are complaining that the same road cost ₦36.5 billion. But when you consider the exchange rate in 2017—₦333 to a dollar—that ₦9.8 billion was worth about $29 million.”
Otti described his critics as “noise makers,” insisting that his administration is delivering on promises where the past government failed.
During the event, the governor also announced the procurement of 20 electric buses, set to be deployed in the state within the next two months as part of efforts to modernize public transportation.
In a separate highlight, Governor Otti commended a keke (tricycle) driver who returned ₦2.4 million left behind by a passenger, praising the act as a symbol of honesty and integrity.
Earlier, carnival convener Onyeka Ernest Udeajah and Chukwuma Azodo, Chairman of the Cooperative Motor Union, both remarked that the newly reconstructed Port Harcourt Road has revitalized several businesses that had previously shut down due to poor infrastructure.