Abia State governorship candidate on the platform of All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Dr. Alex Otti has unveiled his blueprint towards transforming Abia State if he wins the February 28 poll.
Otti, who spoke on Wednesday in Lagos during an event tagged “Evening With Alex” which doubled as a book launch and fund-raising in support of his gubernatorial election campaign, promised to bring a new and excellent dimension to public service in Abia State.
He noted that the state is blessed enough to be a role model or compete with the best in the country and therefore, promised that he would not depend on the federal allocation to achieve his developmental agenda for the state.
“I will not depend on Federal allocation to transform the state. I know where the money is and I will go for it,” he said.
The former Group Managing Director/CEO of Diamond Bank Plc. also asserted that he would make agriculture, education, youth empowerment through job creation and infrastructure development, among others as the focus of his administration.
He lamented that the current situation in Abia State was worrisome and the state had come to a terrible condition due to poor management of its resources just as he maintained that it was the bane of many states in the country.
He, therefore, stated that his background and experience would come handy to give the state a facelift and place it on the trajectory of rapid development, stressing that he would never disappoint Abia people.
“I have the quality and the courage; if I eventually become governor, Abia State will not remain the same,” he said, adding “people want development, they want people with impeccable character, they want people with skill, with vision; people that can turn service around in Abia State.”
and all those are some of the things we have going for us because we are widely accepted by the people.”
Otti disclosed that his foray into politics after several years in the corporate world was “driven by patriotic zeal and abiding desire to contribute more directly to the overall socio-economic and political transformation of Abia State”.
On whether the race is going to be a roller coaster for him, he maintained that it might not be easy but there is hope that at the end there will be cause to celebrate.
“The race is not set but has started; the election is around the corner. We are surging on and is not an easy process but we found out that we have found favour in His sight”, he said.
On the high level politics laced with propaganda that seems to have become the norm as the election approaches, Otti said he would not indulge in that because he believed in himself and his vision for Abia State.
“We are not going to spend time spreading propaganda because any product that is good sells itself”, he said.
When the book titled “Saving the Future: Agenda for Economic Development And Prosperity” was launched it was a praise galore for the governorship candidate while the fund raising time could be described as a moment of Naira rain.
Perhaps as a sign of his acceptability, the event was graced by eminent personalities that crossed across all strata of the society with people from his primary constituency heavily represented.
A royal touch was also added to the event with the presence of Oba of Lagos, Rilwan Akiolu and Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Nnaemeka Alfred Achebe, both of who attested to the good quality and administrative acumen of Otti, which they said reflected in his days at the banking sector where he showed that he had the Midas touch to turn things around.
Dr. Otti started started his banking career in 1989 with the Nigeria International Bank Limited, a subsidiary of Citibank New York. In 1996, he moved to the United Bank for Africa Plc as Head, Corporate Banking Sector, South. In 2000, he was promoted Assistant General Manager. In 2001, he moved to First Bank of Nigeria Plc as an Assistant General Manager and was appointed an Executive Director, Commercial Banking in September 2005. On March 1, 2011, he assumed duties as Group Managing Director/CEO of Diamond Bank Plc where he was until 2014 when he quit the position to go into politics in his home state.
