Being the Text of a Speech Presented by Governor Alex C. Otti, OFR at the flag off of the Reconstruction of the 12.6-kilometre Ohanze-Ntighauzor-Obete-Umuoha-Oberete-Abiaka-Akirika Obu Road on Wednesday, February 12, 2025 at Orie Agalaba Roundabout.
Protocols,
1. Our dear State Abia is a large community of great people united by common beliefs and values and a collective history of consistency in meeting adversity with unflinching resilience. We may greet differently, our dialects may differ but we are bound together as one people by strong bonds of brotherhood, shared cultural identities and commitment to the principles of truth and fairness. Of course this is the rule and there definitely would be exceptions.
2. Without understating the place of politics in our general development aspirations, I am, however, bold to say that the true spirit of this land cannot be defined by the political leanings and appetites of a few elites. Our strength as a people lies in the disposition of our common people, the zeal to wake up each morning with a sense of duty to family and community — a strong will to follow the opportunities that each day brings because therein lies the hopes for a better tomorrow.
3. The advantages we enjoy as a people come from the resolute determination of our women to give their all that the children may live and have the chance to fight for their future; it is also in the energy of our young people to rise above the limitations of their backgrounds to enrich our human experiences with their special gifts and talents. We may engage in different trades and occupations but what is common amongst us is the persistence we bring to our daily vocations because we appreciate the connection between our work today, and the opportunities of tomorrow.
4. We are therefore a community that prospers and thrives on the honest enterprises of the ordinary people — the farmer who welcomes both sunlight and rainfall as blessings from above, the trader is not afraid to travel through the night that he may serve his customers by morning, the student who does not care about the absence of electricity in his village but spends long hours of the night reading that he may learn something new or pass his examinations in flying colours, the child who does not shrivel at life because of a tragic experience but ventures out with courage that he may win and inspire a new generation of children to dream. Our story essentially is a long chronicle of the triumph of the human spirit over adversity and setbacks.
5. This afternoon, we have gathered to congratulate you for what you have been able to achieve in a very challenging environment and then lay the foundation for a more promising future. On this note distinguished ladies and gentlemen, let me joyfully welcome you to the official flag off of the reconstruction of the 12.6 kilometre Ohanze-Ntighauzor-Obete-Umuoha-Oberete-Abiaka-Akirika Obu Road which cuts across Obingwa and Ukwa East LGAs, and connects the State to our kith and kin in Akwa Ibom state. This project is not just strategic; it is an economic livewire whose abandonment for several years speaks to the profound neglect this part of the state suffered for decades. The story, however, changes from today.
6. In no distant future, when we shall return for the commissioning ceremony, we shall be looking beyond just roads but the convergence of new opportunities. As several speakers before now have rightly noted, this project will not just open up this part of the state for more profitable investments in agriculture, real estate, hospitality, and retail trade, it will mark an end to years of waste and missed opportunities.
7. This project, I have to admit, is very dear to my heart because it aligns perfectly with the development vision of the administration for the expansion of Aba as a major urban destination. We are committed to expanding the urban boundaries of our beloved Enyimba City by extending quality infrastructure to the outskirts so as to increase their appeal to property investors, businesses and residents. Quality roads are only the foundation; we shall work closely with private businesses to improve broadband internet access amongst other initiatives designed to close the infrastructure gap between the city centre and the suburbs.
8. We shall not only deploy every resource available to us to accomplish our development priorities for the greater Aba urban corridor, we shall work with international organisations and our development partners around the world to turn this corridor into a major hub for agriculture and food processing enterprises, a real estate goldmine and a friendly environment for the creative ecosystem. Our proposal to raise the size of Aba’s economy over the next few years will find great traction through projects such as this because they create entry pathways for different investor groups.
9. As you may well know, our grand development plans for the greater Aba urban corridor and the State at large will be hampered if we do not generate sufficient revenue to fund projects such as this. We therefore encourage you to make a new commitment to promptly and regularly pay your individual and business taxes. We have since created multiple electronic channels to make payments seamless. The State, you may recall, has also outlawed the old practice of deploying thugs for the purpose of revenue collection because our development agenda is beyond infrastructure, we are also committed to building a new community of decent and patriotic individuals who will not be tempted to cut corners nor engage in unethical practices for private gains.
10. Our investments in infrastructural development in different communities are also structured to give taxpayers the confidence to cooperate with the government by voluntarily paying their taxes and other statutory fees. Be that as it may, we are also prepared to use every legitimate tool available to us to enforce the collection of all payments due to the State Government. Our internally generated revenue target for the 2025 fiscal year is N120 billion and we shall throw everything at it because that is how we intend to fund the development projects we have mapped out for the New Year including this one.
11. Let me, as I conclude, thank the Honourable Commissioner for Works, Engr. Don Otumchere Oti, and his team for effectively driving our road infrastructure development programmes in all parts of the State. At the last count, teams from the Ministry are actively supervising projects in about 50 different sites; this is in addition to their commitments in other locations where we are using the direct labour approach to build and maintain our stock of road infrastructure. I am certain that they will bring their professional expertise to bear in the supervision of this 12.6 kilometre stretch of road. As always, there should be no compromise and execution must match the approved design specifics except where changes are required to accommodate new developments that had not been anticipated at the design stage. I am impressed with the profile and track record of the Contractor, and expect nothing short of the best standards at every stage of the project execution.
12. May I also call on the general public and the community stakeholders in particular to cooperate with the construction team for the successful delivery of this Project. This is not just about the government, the different stakeholder groups in the communities should take ownership and guard against theft of construction materials by hoodlums or any form of harassment or extortion of the construction workers as such practices have no place in the New Abia. The timely delivery of this project is in our hands so we are invited to work in synergy to make it happen.
13. Thank you for listening and may God bless Abia State.
Dr Alex C. Otti, OFR,
12/02/2025