Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti, OFR, has called on Abians to embrace the new year with great hope, optimism, and confidence.
The governor, who was addressing Abians on his New Year broadcast titled “A Journey of Great Expectations,” said that the year 2024 will be a year of consolidation of the gains made in the past 7 months of his administration and announced that plans are almost concluded for the upward review of worker salaries to fit into the prevailing economic realities, adding, “We shall review the salaries of all the employees upwards to reflect the economic realities of the time. Work on it is in the final stages.”
On his promise to defray arrears of pensions in the state before the end of 2023, the governor explained that “it is unfortunate to report that a few challenges have conspired to ensure that we are unable to keep this promise. Based on the figures available to us, we had arranged the funds to make good on this promise; however, before making the payment, we decided to conduct a digital verification of the pensioners. To our shock, we found that there were pensioners who had been owed since 2014. At the end of the exercise, just a week ago, the total figure required for the payment was twice the amount we had provided.
“While we continue to engage the National Union of Pensioners, we believe we will be able to make the payment before the end of the first quarter of this new year. If required, we may go back to the House of Assembly for necessary approval to ensure that this payment is made.”.
Otti further informed that his government will continue its strategic investments in the education and health sectors, stating, “Our commitment is to close the funding gap in education and health in the first instance and then see that funds are channelled to meet the most pressing needs of the sectors” and revealing that he will meet with an international body of advisers known as the Abia Global Economic Advisory Board (GEAB), made up of accomplished internationally recognised experts from across the globe, “who will help in our journey to take our state to the world as a preferred investment destination.”
The Governor said, “Our general approach as a government is to create the right environment to support the success of businesses in ways that create jobs,” maintaining that technology, which has been at the heart of the transformation and reform agenda of the government, shall move to a new gear in 2024, starting with the digitalization of the operation of the public institutions for ease of access and efficiency.
According to him, “We shall also leverage the advantages of technology to drive state-wide human capital development, economic empowerment for the youth, and most importantly, job creation.”
Otti noted that “the huge sum which the government will be investing in the critical sectors to spur economic growth, create employment opportunities, and revive local businesses, particularly MSMSE, which is Micro Small and Medium Scale Enterprises, we have already been engaging other members of the organised private sector to take advantage of our business-friendly policies to invest in the state.”
He listed improved security, road infrastructure, regular payment of salaries, reinvigoration of the health sector, restoration of security, effective urban management, and support for the economically vulnerable, among other achievements that speak volumes about the fact that he is on a mission to restore and rebuild, noting that a whopping 84 per cent of the 2024 budget has been earmarked for capital projects that include the rebuilding and remodelling of schools and hospitals as well as the building of a world-class health village to stem the tide of medical tourism.
The state chief executive noted that part of the 2024 budget will also be invested in critical sectors to spur economic growth, create employment opportunities, and drive local businesses while describing the year 2023 as a watershed in the political history of the state.
He encouraged citizens to sustain their support by paying their taxes as well as cooperating with security agencies in the state to achieve the needed security.
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