The former Governor of Abia State, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, who is representing Abia North Senatorial District at the Senate, has received laudable commendation from the incumbent Governor of the South-East state, Alex Chioma Otti.
During the courtesy visit, Otti on Sunday evening, 8th June, 2025 acknowledged the enviable records set in Aba and across Abia by his predecessor, Orji Kalu from 1999-2007. Otti without mincing words, made it public that Kalu’s Blueprint is what he is using to develop Aba city and other parts of Abia State.
“Government and Governance is a continuum, it can be broken but you must go back and recover it,” the Governor asserted. Otti noted that Kalu did an excellent job in the state and he will borrow a leaf from the template.
The number one citizen of Abia State also emphasised how his mother was an ardent and one of the firm supporters of Kalu when he was Governor, recalling how he constructed standard roads network across Aba and hasn’t stopped using the template laid down by Kalu. “I can assure you, that template is not wrong. You fix the place that generates the revenue, the revenue will come and you use it to fix other places,” Otti opined.
Gov. Otti’s Mum and others before, within and after her generation are very conversant with how Kalu did very well as governor and impacted the lives of Abians in Education, Agriculture, Road Infrastructure, Commerce, etc. “Kalu paid teachers salaries as at when due, provided free education, free buses and educational materials to students and pupils of Abia State. Under Kalu’s leadership, Abia State University never lost accreditation by Nigeria University Commission, NUC.
“Kalu brought in auxiliary professors from University of Nigeria, Nsukka to boost the workforce in ABSU. The State owned schools never went on industrial strike for 8 years he was governor.
“The Abia State Teaching Hospital was built in Aba and was well equipped with the state-of-the-art equipment and consultants who were well grounded at what they do. “Kalu built Judges quarters for Judges and made their lives more comfortable than how he met them. These and many more are the exceptional ways Kalu utilised his security votes and attracted so much developmental changes to Abia State as governor”.
Recall that Kalu became Governor at a very young age of 39, coming with the well established business mindset he put forth the knowledge to work which made him to be recognised as the “Action Governor” by former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, who came on a working visit to Abia State. After seeing the tremendous transformations brought by Kalu, Obasanjo had no option than to praise Kalu for doing much with meagre allocations at that time.
Also recall that previously during commissioning of the Aba Integrated Power Project, Otti had acknowledged Kalu as the pioneer brain behind the Aba power grid. This project was primarily driven by Geometric Power Limited and involves a privately-owned power distribution company, Aba Power Limited Electric (APLE), licensed by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission. Gov. Otti thought it wise to reference Kalu as the forerunner of the Aba Grid.
Kalu, while speaking, described Otti as who he can’t play politics with and assured him of visiting him whenever he is in the State. Kalu told the Governor that he would have been around for his 2nd anniversary in office, but for President Bola Tinubu who earlier invited him to Lagos for his own celebration to commemorate his two-year stay in office.
