Appraising Dr. Alex Otti’s Manifesto for Abia
By Honest Munachiso Offor
This will be Dr. Otti’s third and perhaps final bid to govern Abia. He could’ve been finishing his second term in office if not for the brazen heist that upturned his win at the polls.
But what kind of governor will Otti be? What kind of government will he run and what does he promise to do differently from others that he has consistently lampooned?
Highlights of Otti’s Manifesto
1. Public declaration of assets. In a show of openness and transparency, Otti has pledged to publicly declare his assets.
2. Service Level Agreement SLA. In a departure from the past where tokenism takes the place of merit, Otti says all his appointees will sign a performance agreement that will be routinely reviewed.
3. Ministry of Aba. The manifesto promises to establish a full fledge ministry to oversee the renewal of Aba.
4. Digitise land administration and ensure the completion of land title transfer within five (5) working days. If achieved, this will be a game changer in unlocking private sector investment
5. Incubation of 1000 new SMEs within the Aba industrial corridor annually.
6. Ensure that all roads are constructed with at least five (5) years maintenance clause in its proposal design.
7. Light rail system that starts from Ukwa going through Aba and Umuahia, Bende, Ohafia and terminating at Arochukwu.
8. Establish cluster farming and extend credit to move Agriculture away from subsistence farming.
9. Create marketing boards to offtake products from farmers and guarantee minimum return of investment.
10. Establish a technology institute with the capacity to train 10,000 youths annually.
11. Build a world class entertainment village with a 24 hour uninterrupted electricity, near the Nsulu Games Village.
12. Install broadband internet facilities in all schools in the state.
13. Establish a youth specific Venture Capital Fund of up to 5 billion naira to provide seed capital for Tech startups.
14. Create Abia Health Insurance Scheme to ensure affordable healthcare in a viable and sustainable way.
15. Target the realisation of 10 billion naira monthly from internally generated revenue.
16. Bring back a new Aba Textile Mill with the capacity to employ thousands of young people.
Quick Takeaway
1. Dr. Alex Otti’s audacious plans are heavy on details and shows a clear understanding of the challenges and the readiness to do more than just what is required.
2. I have to confess that some of the plans are a bit too ambitious for a state that is still deep in the throes of economic and social dilemma.
3. 10 billion naira on IGR, monthly. Light rail line to connect all parts of the state. Entertainment village. These are very fantastic plans but are they achievable in the interim?
4. I couldn’t find a mention of how he intends to offset the humongous pension liability. This is curious coming from a known champion of workers and pensioners welfare.
Over all, Otti’s manifesto is an ambitious plan that if effectively implemented, can indeed achieve his vision of “restoring the glory of Abia state and making her truly number one state in Nigeria”.
