Paul Ikonne, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has accused the governor of Abia State, Alex Otti, of chasing clout in the wake of the ordeal currently being faced by the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
Ikonne, while urging the Governor to desist from such a move said Otti should rather focus on being accountable over the N54 billion smart school initiative and the N6 billion recreational centre executed by his administration in Abia.
According to Ikonne, the governor’s recent comment on Kanu’s trial and his possible release are nothing but a desperate attempt to gain attention.
He also alleged that Otti has constantly appeared to adopt the use of sensitive national issues to distract the people of Abia from his record of underperformance and questionable financial practices.
In a statement issued by Ujo Justice, his chief press Secretary, Ikonne said, “Governor Otti has chosen to play politics with the emotions of the people by dragging the name of Nnamdi Kanu into his failing government narrative.”
The APC chieftain challenged the governor to point to the exact locations of those projects and to invite the media for verification.
“If truly these projects exist, why were they not commissioned during the governor’s recent public show of some rehabilitated roads? Why does every report from Abia Government House end up as social media content with no substance on the ground?” Ikonne queried.
He noted that the Abia State Government’s quarterly performance report shows disturbing figures — money written off for projects that neither exist nor can be traced — while the government continues to receive over N30 billion monthly in allocations and Internally Generated Revenue.
“For more than two years in office, Governor Otti never paid a visit, never made a concrete intervention, and never demonstrated any concern about Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s situation. Now that his government’s credibility is collapsing, he suddenly remembers Kanu. That is hypocrisy at its peak,” Ikonne added.