N54 billion Renovation: Teach Alex Otti transparency, accountability – APC group tells Obi

A pro-All Progressives Congress (APC) group, Abia Best Interest Association, has challenged the 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, to teach his protégé, Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti, the principles of transparency and accountability.

The group made the call at a press conference in Abuja on Tuesday.

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This is coming after it had accused the Otti-led government of spending ₦54 billion on the renovation and retrofitting of 51 smart schools across the state with no evidence on the ground to justify the expenditure.

Speaking, the convener of the group, Eze Chikamnayo, charged Obi, who is widely regarded as a strong opposition voice against the present administration and an advocate of transparency, to “teach” Governor Otti, his protégé, the principles he preaches.

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“We are challenging Mr. Peter Obi today to stop all the noise he is making across this country about transparency and accountability. Charity ought to begin at home. Let Mr. Peter Obi take Mr. Alex Otti into one small room and give him sufficient tutelage and lecture on transparency and accountability”, the group said.

The group also described Otti as “a poster boy for the Labour Party,” insisting that he should not shy away from verification, given the party’s popular slogan, ‘go and verify.’

“It is instructive that Alex Otti is a member of the Labour Party, a party that prides itself on the slogan, ‘go and verify.’ And now, how can a party that tells Nigerians to go and verify be afraid to be verified? We want to verify the Labour Party in Abia State because Mr. Alex Otti is a poster boy of the Labour Party in Nigeria. And being the poster boy of the Labour Party in Nigeria, everything Mr. Alex Otti is doing is a microcosm of what the Labour Party wants to do across Nigeria. If Mr. Alex Otti is corrupt, it means the Labour Party administration is corrupt.

“If Mr. Alex Otti is afraid of transparency and accountability, it means the Labour Party in Nigeria cannot be trusted for accountability and transparency. If Mr. Alex Otti is afraid of being asked questions, it means that the Labour Party is not a party to be trusted with the Federal Republic of Nigeria”, the group said.

Chikamnayo further alleged that more than ₦80 billion had been diverted in the name of school projects, yet no new buildings exist.

According to him, “There is no single new smart school project anywhere in Abia State as widely reported by the government. Furthermore, our fact-finding visits to many public schools in Abia State indicate that over 95 percent of them remain in a state of severe neglect—with dilapidated buildings, unfenced compounds, together with absence of learning and teaching equipment.

“These troubling realities stand in stark contrast to the said expenditure recorded in the State Government Budget Performance Report, which is different from other financial inflows recorded under the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) and various Federal Intervention Programs.

“The failure and refusal to publish the list, location, contractors and pictures of the purported 51 public school projects for which over ₦54 billion has been spent between the first and fourth quarter of 2024 is also indicative of systemic corruption, impunity, lack of transparency and accountability in governance.”

The group also drew comparisons with Enugu State, alleging that while Enugu budgeted less than ₦40 billion to construct 200 smart schools—many of which are already visible—the Otti administration has nothing to show for a larger budget.

“We did a comparative analysis between Abia and the neighbouring state of Enugu, and we discovered that Enugu State budgeted less than ₦40 billion for 200 smart schools. If you go to social media today, you will see countless videos of smart schools emanating from Enugu State.

“If Enugu State Government is building 200 smart schools with less than ₦40 billion, and Abia State is purportedly building 51 smart schools with a whopping sum of ₦54 billion, and yet Enugu State is showcasing their smart schools after two years, while Abia State Government has nothing to show, are we not supposed to ask questions? Every Abian should ask questions. And that is the reason why we came out to say this is not supposed to be”, they said.

The group further revealed that it had petitioned anti-graft agencies including the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), as well as the National Assembly, Federal Ministry of Finance, World Bank, Transparency International, and other institutions, seeking their intervention.

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