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Ukoha, Gov. Otti’s CPS Misfires, Implicates His Boss

CDA News January 24, 2025

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Abia State Governor’s Chief Press Secretary (CPS) in his usual busybody “garagara” has unknowingly exposed Otti’s government to more public scrutiny and ridicule with his vague attempt at explaining the embarrassing Abia State financial reports as published by the Accountant General.

Most experienced and sophisticated media managers would have even wished that such damning revelations from the Abia state Annual financial report by the Accountant General be buried and allowed to slide due to unexplained figures that have become serious embarrassment and have raised serious credibility issues for Otti’s Government . Am not surprised that mail was not bogged which is against the practice. Am sure they know the young man has brought shame to a drowning administration.

While the general public and discerning minds are still grappling with the alarming and unexplained expenditure figures in Abia’s quarterly reports, the timing and substance of the CPS’S response to Otti’s government financial statement is worrisome. The Q2 budget performance report of 2023, published in August 2023, exposed shocking allocations like N6.7 billion for recreational facility, N7 billion for research and development, and several other spurious expenditures that cannot be found anywhere in Abia.

Surprisingly, 15 months after the first quarterly financial report was published on Abia State website by the Accountant General, Otti’s CPS in his usual busybody attempt to impress his paymaster and maybe to keep his job that is obviously shaking, issued a reply he titled “Bringing Ignorance and Mischief to Closure.” A closer perusal of his long text reveals a mind clouded with confusion, offering vague and uninspired explanations that only further embarrassed Otti’s administration.

A smart and astute media handler would have opted to outrightly deny the financial report which they have no logical explanation for and be silent about it with hopes that the matter will fade away and finally be forgotten after sometime but instead Otti’s overzealous CPS formally acknowledged and accepted the questionable expenditures, revealing how Abia State Government House spent N32 billion on overheads in 2023, while only N27 billion was allocated for personnel costs (salaries and pensions) of Abians.

For clarity, they can confuse a few gullible with this weak and watery response to issues that questiond the credibility and integrity of Abia state government but cannot convince discerning minds who are paying attention to Otti’s government fiscal recklessness. I am sure with the level of embarrassment these aides have caused the Governor, he sincerely needs to re-engage KPMG but this time to teach these shallow guys how to address serious fiscal concerns with substance and clarity, rather than offering empty replies that miss the mark.

Thanks to SFTAS programme (States Fiscal Transparency, Accountability, and Sustainability) of World Bank which has exposed Otti’s government’s monumental financial mismanagement for the world to clearly see. This program mandates that states publish their quarterly and annual financial reports. I am sure that Otti and his people never envisaged that such programme existed and it has proven to be a big challenge for them as it exposed them to rigorous and constant scrutiny by eagle eyed Abians.

The issues raised in the financial report are not affected by changes in economic codes or program classifications. By the CPS reply, Otti’s government has openly acknowledged spending N7 billion on research and development (R&D), but how can such a humongous expenditure be justified? The 2023 financial report shows no indication of a local government election taking place, yet funds were reportedly allocated for “consultancy” and “capacity building.” This is deeply troubling for a government that promised fiscal prudence during the 2023 election campaign.

Which beautification did we see in Abia under urban renewal project, as at the first quarter of 2023? The poorly done roundabouts at Aba and Umuahia which are being powered with a 30kv generator also appeared under Government house expense in 2023 financials.

Why did the government change the security vote from N939m as contained in their first quarter report Q3, of 2023 to a lesser figure subsequently, apparently due to the outcry. Does it mean the state suddenly realised that they have been taking excess money as Security Vote than before, or was that another economic code being used to take more than that?

Does this your kindergarten response address the issue of N6.7b recreational facility? Can you point out the direct description of that expense code under programme classification?

Can you also tell Abians the programme classification of ICT Hub of N2.4b that resulted in the sack of Chima Oriaku who tried to question that expenditure?

Can you show us the Economic code of farm seedlings and the programme classification of N4.2billion? Can that change the fact that Abians never got any farm inputs under that code? The fertilizer that was shared came from the Federal Government, and was a different project .

The beauty of your response is that you never disputed the figures as seen in the financial report as published by the state on abiastate.gov.ng.

I am aware that some of the supporters of this administration have been demanding a response for all those figures as stated on Abia financial report. This is an effort to discredit those asking questions based on these discoveries. You failed and have further embarrassed a government you are struggling to protect.

I supervised the setting up of the SEFTAS unit that is responsible for this report that caused your government sleepless nights. Abia was among the first 6 states that embraced this programme before it became compulsory for all the 36 states including Abuja and the Federal Government.

I am sure that if this report were optional, this government would deny Abians access to it, just as they did in their procurement process where contract figures are hidden from Abians.

This can never be a closure to an admissible evidence which you have officially handed over to Abians.