OPINION: ALEX OTTI IS A DESPERATE FATHER OF LIES, DECEIT AND DESTRUCTION -JOHN OKIYI KALU

As if his well known place of origin crisis is not enough, when Otti finally bought the Governorship ticket of APGA in 2015, after realizing that the People's Democratic Party (PDP) would not give him the party's ticket, in line with its unwavering stand on Equity which favours the Ngwa axis of the State at the time, and having been registered as a member of the party in Arochukwu ward 3 in the old Bende axis of Abia State with card number, 016, Otti launched his campaign at Aba by lying to the people that he, as a private citizen, obtained a loan of $100bn from International Finance Corporation (IFC) to rebuild Aba even when, as a former banker, he must have known that individuals cannot obtain loans on behalf of a state government. Since then he has not accounted for the money even after he claimed that he only borrowed $100m as against $100b.

That was only the beginning of the putrid litany of lies, deceit and sheer mischief that characterized Otti's dead on arrival attempt to appropriate the Governorship seat by all means. Obviously the people of Abia State saw through him and decided that they cannot trust him with the office of Governor of Abia State, leading to his serial defeat in 2015 and 2019.

While he lost with about 78,000 votes in 2015 to place second, by 2019 he lost by nearly 200,000 votes to come a distant third, with Governor Ikpeazu scoring 261,127 votes while Otti scored 64,366 votes. It is important to note that in 2015 Governorship poll, Dr Ikpeazu polled 264,713 to defeat Alex Otti who polled 180,882 votes.

As expected from a desperado, Otti's latest judicial challenge is premised on lies and deceit that he hoped will help him achieve his objective of canceling the election in the 15 LGAs he lost while upholding the result of the 2 LGAs he marginally won. In his desperate mind, even the APC candidate, UCHE Ogah, couldn't have won in his own LGA of Isuikwuato but he (Otti) must have won in Arochukwu LGA where he actually comes from but publicly disowned.

Video and picture evidence abound to show that Otti hired buses of his supporters dressed in his party uniform to the court complex to sing and dance for him. Even his media aides posted those pictures online to show his supporters "cheering Otti at the tribunalÔÇØ.

For the same Otti to turn round and complain about Governor Ikpeazu's supporters cheering him at the same tribunal is symptomatic of a man who the spirit of lies and deceit has taken full control of. Governor

I have it on good authority that Otti also sponsored renegade pensioners and protest-for-cash urchins to mount a failed protest on the day of the tribunal sitting in order to embarrass the Governor in the media and score cheap political point that surely won't have any bearing to the ruling of the tribunal which is expected to be based on law and evidence adduced by the parties in the matter. It is a fact that the members and leaders of Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP), Abia State Chapter, are currently discussing with the government on how to clear their outstanding wages, some of which obviously did not emanate from this administration as Otti's hired protesters also unwittingly mentioned outstandings from 1998-2007 and beyond. Officials of NUP in Abia State have also come out to disown the protesters and protest mounted by less than 100 persons, including non pensioners, paid to leave locations as far as Arochukwu LGA to Umuahia and later seen receiving protest participation payments at a location along Bende road Umuahia afterwards.

On Saturday, 31st of August 2019, Abia State workers in state Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) who make up more than 70% of the state workforce started receiving their August 2019 salaries and I make bold to state that they are not owed any month of salary arrears. Yet Otti will deceitfully have you believe that "Abia workers are owed 32 months salary arrearsÔÇØ. There is no doubt that Otti is aware that those MDA workers are the group statutorily paid directly by the state Government but he will rather embark on his mission of deceit and lies to attempt to destroy his opponent.

I challenge Alex Chioma Otti to show where the law permits state or federal governments to directly pay wages of workers in parastatals. Yet we have made interventions to support our ailing parastatals through payment of subventions and others even as we also place on record that more than 60% of our state parastatals are up to date with salary payment. These facts account for why Governor Ikpeazu continue to enjoy the goodwill and support of majority of Abia workers who also know that they are better remunerated than their counterparts in other south east states, to the chagrin of Otti.

A federal parastatal located in Abia State ran into murky financial waters and owed workers months of arrears, cut wages to 70% whereas the MDAs of the federal government were up to date and paying 100%. The management of that institution pleaded for patience, worked hard and ultimately paid off the arrears and balance of 30%.

Otti probably does not know this and hence continue to celebrate his ignorance in public sector administration. Just like his allegation that we have received the last tranche of Paris Club Refund and mismanaged it bother on mischief making.

We are yet to receive the last tranche of Paris Club Refunds and we are proud of the fact that both ICPC and members of Nigeria Governors Forum applauded the transparent management of previous refund receipts.

In all these, followers of Abia politics know for a fact that while the administration of Governor Okezie Ikpeazu has not solved all Abia problems in four years, the state has certainly made appreciable progress since he became the Governor. Also, God cannot lie or be mocked by any individual. In the Bible book of Psalm 5:9, God said concerning men like Otti: "There is nothing reliable in what they say; Their inward part is destruction itself Their throat is an open grave; They flatter with their tongue.ÔÇØ