Baskadia

The euphoria which greeted the emergence of Dr Alex Otti as new governor of Abia state is gradually dying down and as everyone can attest to , the governor has resumed his duties and on a sound note as expected. The excitement and euphoria is expected considering the shenanigans that was ochestrated by those who have perennially held the state down since the advent of this republic in 1999.The goal of this essay is not to bore my reader with the political history of Abia state within this period but to postulate a way forward in getting the state working. However mention in passing needs to be made about the disastrous state of affairs which the new governor inevitably has had to inherit from his predecessor - cumulative rot that has spanned twenty four years and perpetrated by the PDP which has held an unbroken sway for all of the period. These are in the areas of totally collapsed infrastructure, chaotic transport sector, ill - motivated civil service ( with arrears of unpaid salaries and gratuity running into years.) Others are entrenched culture of impunity and corruption, abuse of government powers and a comatose economy with huge and unsustainable debt profile. The list is actually endless . It is ironical that Abia state has found itself where it is today unfortunately given the abundant internally generated revenue potentials of the state .

The new governor has a daunting task ahead of him no doubt , but Abians are consoled by the fact that he came abundantly prepared due to his exposures and experiences in human and resources management and the private sector background where he has more than distinguished himself . Abians will not accept excuses for failure because. The governor himself has always been the choice of the people of Abia but he has always been rigged out until this time around .

If the following are methodously and meticulously done Abia state will regain it's pride of place as a foremost economic zone in Nigeria and West Africa at large . First , The governor must take the bull by the horn by revamping most of the crucial roads that serve as corridors from different axis into Abia state and not excluding internal link roads into the various markets and economic centers.This can be realized through a robust PPP model .

Second. effort must be made to leverage on the newly passed bill which enables state governments develop or porsue their own power sources . This will ensure the availability of power for industries and small and medium scale enterprises and boost production and provision of goods and services as well as set the pace for the much needed industrialization which in turn will unlock various potentials even up to ancillary sectors including agriculture etc .

Aba ' s reputation for ingenuity can be further stimulated and aggregated if a well coordinated approach is undertaken to bring the various disparate artisans into a cluster or a hub to give them the benefits of enonomics of scale . The government could grant these very skilled individuals access to free credits and make modern tools and equipment including power available to them at friendly terms.

Finally, the issue of law and order has for a long time proven to be a hard nut to crack in the major towns in Abia state . This has been due largely to lack of political will to do the needful. Aba and Umuahia have for long been a nightmare to motorists due to activities of miscreants and street urchins . This scenario has a positive association and correlation with insecurity. Abians will be looking unto their first ever people chosen governor to bring sanity to the roads , streets and markets in Abia . Never again will Abia roads, streets and markets be given over to miscreants as indigenship or political settlement. Henceforth we need an Abia that works ,.The New Abia is possible with Otti..