by Nurat Uthman
Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, on Thursday, swore in a batch of six new commissioners to rejig and complement the State Executive Council
This is barely three months after three commissioners resigned from his cabinet.
The newly sworn-in commissioners are: Professor Ogbonnaya Uche, Mr David U. Kalu, Kingsley Chibueze Nwokocha, Dr. Uwaoma Ukandu, Mrs. Queen Ijeoma Aghukwa, and Ubochi Goodluck Chinedu.
Addressing the new commissioners after they had been administered the oaths of office and allegiance by the Solicitor General and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice, Mr Ogubunka, Otti urged them to key into his development agenda for the good of the state.
He also charged them to be ready to deliver, warning that he has no room for mediocrity.
“We have carefully selected these highly accomplished individuals to bring new ideas and energy to our team. The new nominations and appointments were made pursuant to our agenda to create a robust architecture that supports excellent service delivery.”
“As I mentioned on this podium a few weeks ago, effective leadership is an exercise in continuous team building, finding the right people, and placing them where they are best suited to thrive. The task of public sector governance is an enormous one that requires having the right people on board in the right positions to drive the central agenda of the administration across many important frontiers.”
“One of the major hallmarks of our administration is going against practices that have proven to stifle growth and dynamism. We have publicly rejected the traditional recruitment pattern of filling strategic government offices with cronies who do very little in terms of the execution of governance businesses,” Gov. Otti stated.
Otti warned the new appointees that there is no room for infighting, stressing that his administration has zero tolerance for corruption and any act capable of bringing the government into disrepute.
The governor, while assuring them that he is always ready to provide them with necessary guidance, disclosed that to further strengthen the governance architecture of the state, there will be a minor restructuring of ministries to be announced soon, adding that it is aimed at making the ministries more dynamic and productive
“To further strengthen the governance architecture, there shall be more restructuring of the Ministries to support the actualization of the administration’s objectives and further empower the Commissioners to function optimally in their respective Ministries, which will be announced soon.
“This is aimed at making the ministries more dynamic and responsive to the evolving realities of governance,” the governor noted.
The governor further made public that his government is working on setting up the Greater Ohafia Development Authority to oversee the development of Abia North.
Responding on behalf of her colleagues, Dr Aghukwa said that their appointment is a privilege and an opportunity to serve.
She thanked the governor for finding them worthy to serve and pledged not to disappoint him, assuring that they would put in their best to move the state forward
