You can’t disrupt Otti’s relationship with Tinubu, federal lawmakers tell Kalu

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The Abia Labour Party (LP) House of Representatives Caucus has cautioned the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, to desist from inciting the federal government and the ruling APC against the Abia State Government, so as not to be “at odds with Ndi Abia”.

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The lawmakers said Mr Kalu was peddling falsehoods to discredit Mr Otti’s administration.

The LP Caucus at the House of Representatives was reacting to Mr Kalu’s remarks that Governor Alex Otti’s administration’s achievements were not commensurate with the funds received from the federation account.

“You cannot be getting the kind of money you are getting and you are doing the job that former governors were doing with the less they were getting.

“The former governors got N4 billion, N5 billion. But today, Tinubu releases N38 billion, N40 billion every month,” Mr Kalu, a member of the ruling APC, said on Sunday while addressing some APC supporters at the Abia Hotels, Umuahia.

He added that the APC would take over the state from Governor Otti’s LP in the 2027 elections.

Mr Kalu, who represents Bende Federal Constituency of Abia State in the House of Representatives, has repeatedly spoken of his ambition to become Abia governor.

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LP caucus reacts

“Governor Otti enjoys a cordial relationship with Mr President, and no amount of political scheming by Honorable Kalu can disrupt Abia’s steady progress,” the Abia LP caucus in the House of Representatives said in a statement issued on Wednesday.

The lawmakers described Mr Kalu’s comment as “unguarded and unhealthy”. They recalled how he had made similar comments in the past.

“In 2024, when elected officials were still settling down to the serious business of governance and delivering dividends of democracy to the peace-loving people of Abia, Hon. Kalu fired the first political salvo.

He openly reiterated a statement he had made in the past, boasting that the APC would ‘capture Abia’ in 2027, flaunting his ‘number six’ position in the federal hierarchy as if political power were a personal trophy.

“Such careless talk, repeated shortly after assuming office as deputy speaker, was not only unintelligent and insensitive but also unbecoming of a public officer who ought to embody humility and emotional intelligence.”

The lawmakers said Governor Otti has “consistently shown respect for both the age and the exalted office of Mr President, maintaining a cordial and constructive relationship with him”. They said that they expect Mr Kalu to accord due respect to Mr Otti because of his office and in deference to his age, “in keeping with Igbo cultural values and proper upbringing”.

“Unlike what is often seen elsewhere, opposition political office holders are met with hostility in their states, Governor Alex Otti has consistently demonstrated political maturity and magnanimity towards Hon. Kalu.

The Governor extended goodwill to him upon his emergence as deputy speaker, including hosting an elaborate state reception in his honor and attended by Labour Party officials and federal legislators.

“Governor Otti directed all Abia LP House members to support Kalu’s emergence as deputy speaker.

“This cooperation should have been reciprocated by Hon. Kalu. Sadly, he has chosen instead to stoke the embers of political disharmony in Abia,” the lawmakers said, adding that the deputy speaker should engage in sober self-reflection, instead of making remarks that are unbecoming of his office.

“He must remember that many have occupied and will still occupy that seat; decorum, not arrogance, defines true leadership,” the lawmakers said.

“Governor Alex Otti has facilitated and is executing numerous federal projects across Abia — including Port Harcourt Road, Ohafia-Arochukwu Road, Omenuko Bridge, and the 25 km Umuahia–Ikot Ekpene Road soon to be flagged off. These are tangible results, a kind of leadership that brings hope to ordinary people, creates jobs, opens up communities, and makes Abia a pride of the nation again.

“As he always boast to be ‘number six’ in national protocol, Hon. Kalu ought to leverage his office to support these projects for Abia’s growth, rather than playing cheap politics in his six years as a member of the House of Representatives.

“If the massive public endorsement of Governor Otti’s achievements, witnessed recently in Aba as applauded by the President who was ably represented by Distinguished Senator David Umahi and the good people of Abia at the flag-off ceremony unsettles Hon. Kalu, that is no justification to pursue mischief and incitement. If he persists on this trajectory, he may find himself at odds with Ndi Abia.

“Abians and Nigerians are hereby urged to disregard Hon. Kalu’s empty boasts and divisive rhetoric. His actions are driven by selfish ambition, not love for the people.”

What we received from FAAC – Abia govt

The Abia State Government, reacting to Mr Kalu’s remarks, said on Monday that it has received from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) N125 billion so far for eight months in 2025, including the allocation to the local councils in the state.

“If we were to go by Kalu’s false claim of a monthly sum of N38billion, it would have stood at N304billion,” the government said. “Should a deputy speaker of a federal legislature be associated with such bare-faced lies?”

Ferdinand Ekeoma, a special adviser on media and publicity to Governor Otti, issued the statement on behalf of the Abia State Government.

“As at April 2023, a few days before Governor Alex Otti assumed office, the exchange rate stood at N460 to the dollar. At the present rate of N1,500 to the dollar, N3.2billion today is equivalent of N1billion in 2023. Given that Nigeria is import dependent, the devaluation has seen states gain in nominal terms, but very little in real terms, because key projects are executed with items and equipment whose components are acquired in foreign currency.

This is why a road project that was built with N1 billion in 2022 would cost close to N4 billion today. If inflation is factored in at an average rate of 20% per annum, the situation would further exacerbate.

“Prior to Governor Alex Otti’s assumption of office, minimum wage being paid in Abia was N30,000 and this was only going to those classified as Core Civil Servants. Today, minimum wage stands at between N70,000 to N74,000. Kalu’s limited knowledge of financial matters and the economy obviously deprived him of the requisite information and facts that could help him when confusion sets in. Couldn’t he have sought help instead of disgracing himself the way he did?”

The Abia State Government advised Mr Kalu to wait for an appropriate time to launch his governorship bid.

“What he is displaying for now is sheer ignorance and rascality as he keeps boasting about 2027 to the point of resorting to incoherent submissions and mendacious fabrications targeted at the government.

“We advise that to take on this government on numbers, you must be financially literate.”