From Kenneth Udeh, Abuja

Fielding questions from journalists in Abia State on Thursday evening during his monthly media parley tagged: “Gov. Alex Otti speaks to Abians”, held at the Government House, Umuahia, the governor addressing a question from the ABN TV correspondent seeking clarification on the viral remarks claiming that the governor was quoted out of context by some media outlets.

Governor Otti responded: “Sometimes when news is reported, it’s taken out of context. If you understand the context of that statement what I said was that when former Governor Orji Uzor Kalu started in 1999, he faced Aba and tried to build a lot of roads in that place.

“The idea is that if you get Aba right, then the rest of the state can easily be fixed. Because Aba is a place that can generate enough internally generated revenue to help and support and fix other parts of the state and that is exactly what we are doing.”

On whether he deliberately ignored the templates of the two succeeding former governors (Senator Theodore Orji, and Okezie Ikpeazu), Governor Otti replied with humour: “When the press ask about the template about the other two former governors, I am sure that you are going somewhere and I will let you land. And it’s for me to choose what template I want to choose, so when you become governor, you pick all of them and put them together (laughs).

“But anyway, that’s the context under which the statement was made, and it is a correct statement.”

The governor reiterated his idea to begin his state development strategy from Aba, which he said is as a result of internal revenue generation.

His words: “The whole idea is that you start from where you can generate revenue, and from there you proceed to the hinterlands. And I’m sure that you can see that it’s exactly what we are doing. When we came, we started with Aba, we faced it, and now today we are virtually in every local government in that state.”

This is not the first time Governor Otti has openly praised Kalu’s development vision.

During a courtesy visit on June 8, 2025, Otti said: “Government and governance is a continuum it can be broken, but you must go back and recover it.”

He acknowledged that Senator Kalu did an “excellent job” as governor, adding that his administration is building on that foundation.

“I can assure you, that template is not wrong. You fix the place that generates the revenue, the revenue will come and you use it to fix other places,” he insisted.

Otti also recounted his personal connection to the Kalu administration, stating: “My mother and others from her generation remember well how Kalu’s leadership positively impacted various sectors in Abia, including education, agriculture, road infrastructure, and commerce.”

Kalu is currently serving as Senator representing Abia North Senatorial District, a position he has held since 2019.

He was also the Chief Whip of the 9th Senate and currently chairs the Senate Committee on the South East Development Commission (SEDC).

Otti’s comments can be described to have drawn inferences to Senator Kalu’s performance as governor of Abia State from 1999 to 2007, in which he is reported to have tansformed the state’s infrastructure with special focus on Aba and Umuahia.

Kalu constructed the entire road networks in Umuahia, despite it not being in his senatorial zone, along with roads in all 17 LGAs.

The landmark roads include: Owaza-Obehie-Azumini (Ukwa East); Nkwoegwu Ring Road (Umuahia North); Abiriba Ring Road; Umuchieze-Leru-Lomara-Nneato (Umunneochi); Amankalu, Okafia, and Golf Road (Igbere); Umikea-Omoba, Ndiro-Irunta, Ururuka, Mbawsi, and many more

In education, Kalu built the Abia State University Teaching Hospital (ABSUTH) and transformed Abia State University (ABSU) by recruiting professors from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, ensuring full NUC accreditation, and constructing hostels, providing generators, and supporting student transportation.

He renovated over 821 schools, constructed 524 classrooms, provided 155,000 desks, and equipped schools with science kits and instructional materials through SPEB and ETF funding.

His social programmes included free education, teacher welfare, and zero strikes in the education sector throughout his eight-year tenure.

In governance infrastructure to mention a few Kalu built: Aguiyi-Ironsi Conference Centre; Okpara Auditorium; Legislators’ Offices, Commissioners’ Quarters, Abia House in Abuja; Staff quarters in Lagos and Abuja; and the famous Umuahia and Aba Township Stadia.

He also built the road to Okon-Aku in Ohafia, which had long been used as a campaign promise by past leaders before him.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo once nicknamed Kalu the “Action Governor” during a presidential visit, impressed by his pace of work despite lean resources.

Senate Track Record

Since becoming Senator, Kalu has constructed over 150 rural roads and installed solar-powered boreholes and streetlights in over 100 communities.

He facilitated the construction and renovation of over 100 schools, distributed learning materials, offered scholarships (especially for medicine and surgery students abroad), and led large-scale youth and women empowerment programmes.

On the legislative front, OrderPaper Nigeria ranks Kalu highest among Senators from Abia with 25 bills to his name between 2019 and 2022.

He is also ranked second among all ex-governors in the Senate by legislative productivity.

National Recognition

Kalu’s service as a lawmaker has earned him multiple awards from national organisations of repute, which include: Three time overall Best Senator in Constituency Projects, the Senate Press Corps (3-time winner); Progressive Leadership Award by the Progressive Movement for Better Nigeria; Honourary Fellowship by the Chartered Institute of Project Managers of Nigeria (CIPMN); and Senator of the Year by the Nigerian Union of Journalists and the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria , NUJ & FRCN (2022).