Alex Otti, the governor of Abia State, praised Siminalayi Fubara, the governor of Rivers State, on Tuesday for the accomplishment of the 10.98-kilometre Aleto-Ogale-Ebubu-Eteo Road project in Eleme Local Government Area of the state.
At the road’s inauguration, Otti complimented Fubara on his memory of completing a road project in the Eleme neighbourhood, where he had formerly resided.
The China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation was given the route, also known as the Old Bori route, on August 14, 2023, for a sum of N6.7 billion.
Otti emphasised in his speech the value of leadership in service, cautioning leaders to serve the people rather than their own interests.
He said, “I’ve always said that leadership is about service. Anytime leadership departs from service, then you are getting it wrong.
“Service should be service to the people, not service to oneself or a very few interests. Anytime you are serving a few people rather than the majority, you need to go and look at yourself again.
“Power belongs to God; no human can arrogate to himself the capacity to give power, except you have the capacity to give life. Of course, you can take life, but you cannot give it.”
Otti noted that “for me, it’s all about good governance. Governor Fubara came prepared, and I don’t believe that any distraction is enough to take his focus away from improving the welfare and interests of the people.
“So, I can assure you, Rivers people, that the dividends of democracy that you are seeing now are still a dress rehearsal. It is early in the morning, and I am sure that in no distant future, you will be seeing more.”
Fubara bemoaned that the contractors handling the majority of the projects commissioned by the immediate past governor of the state, Nyesom Wike, “are still coming for their balance payments running into millions and billions,” even though he acknowledged that debt was a big issue in his government.
“I have said I don’t want to talk because I am part of that system, but when they keep pushing me, I will say it so that we will see the nyansh of the fowl.”
The governor also stated that he planned to present a “white paper” outlining the project’s funding at the project’s inauguration.
“As we proceed, we will create a white paper showing the record and amounts this project was awarded,” he noted.
Fubara expressed happiness that the commemoration of his “One Year in Office” anniversary had begun with the groundbreaking of a road project in Eleme, the neighbourhood where he first resided and began working.
He claimed that despite all of the difficulties, the finished project now shows that his administration is still committed to providing development for the populace.
“I’m happy to be here and to join the good people of Rivers State to start this wonderful celebration of our first anniversary in the face of all the troubles. It shows that we are still focused, not minding the level of distractions,” he said.
Fubara added that Otti’s presence at the inauguration of the road is because “he is not an artificial integrity man but an action integrity man.”
