A Chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, and two-time governorship candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, Dr. Alex Otti, has stated that he was in the race for the governorship of Abia State for all Abians.
Otti stated this on Sunday at Umuahia, the Abia State capital, while formally declaring his intention to run for the 2023 governorship election in the State.
He said his vision and mission to bring change to Abia State had not changed, adding that he planned to pursue economic policies for shared prosperity and immediate attention on youth employment.
Otti said:
I’m in the race for the successful and the struggling Abians.
I’m in the race for those breaking barriers in technology and discovering cures for diseases.
I’m the race for petty traders who stand on their feet all day while hawking around the risky roads of Abia North, the dirty streets of Abia South and dangerous roads of Abia Central.
I’m in the race for the nurses and doctors who work day and night under terrible conditions and yet receive the reward of stagnated wages.
I’m in the race for the truckers, taxi and Keke drivers who drive for hours on our 3D roads – (Dirty, Dangerous and Deadly)
I’m in the race for the farmers who feed us.
I’m in the race for the small business owners who took a risk to establish their businesses, but lack the enabling environment to succeed.
I’m in the race for everyone who has ever been knocked down, but refused to be knocked out.
I’m in the race for those civil servants and teachers who work so hard for the state, but have been rewarded with arrears of salaries.
I’m in the race for those who have lost their properties and source of livelihood to political witch hunt for the mere ‘sin’ of joining in the fight against corruption, resisting their oppressors or lending their voices to speak against the ills in Abia.
I’m in the race for those who have lost loved ones on the death traps we call roads, for those whose spirit have been dampened and are on the verge of a total breakdown.
I’m not in the race for some Abians, I’m in the race for all Abians.”
The seasoned banker made a commitment to courageously restore the lost glory of Aba through well planned and well executed infrastructural revolution, adding that payment of salaries and pensions would not be considered as gestures to workers and pensioners in Abia State.
He said:
“Our hard work, character and conduct shall serve as the biggest collateral that would attract investors and create job opportunities for our teeming youths as we create the enabling environment.”
