Governor of Abia State, Dr Alex Otti, has charged Christians to participate in politics.
He said when Christians shun politics, they leave the leadership space to those who would not govern them well.
The governor said it is a faithful saying that every society gets the type of leadership it deserves.
Otti spoke yesterday at The Transforming Church (TTC) in Gwarimpa, Abuja, where he was a guest for the lead pastor, Rev Sam Oye.
Otti said this is not the time that the children of God would sit idly and allow persons who have no excellent mission for society to take up leadership positions in the country
He said, “If you sit back and conclude that politics is for ‘them’, the politicians would determine your destiny for you.
“There is a saying in the scripture that power belongs to God; if that is so, why are the children of God shying away from politics? By getting into politics and power, you can make many changes.
“As the former managing director of Diamond Bank from 2011 to 2023, I could only affect a small population, but as a state governor today, I have a larger population of people to affect their lives for the good of society.
“For instance, upon coming into power, we realised that our people were suffering, so we identified 10,000 of them and put N1 billion into their hands cumulatively without any interest. By that, we created 10,000 jobs. Just recently, we disbursed N365 million in interest-free loans to 300 farmers. All of these have changed the landscape, and I couldn’t have done them if I wasn’t in power,” he said.
Narrating the events preceding his assumption of power, Otti said his election victory was essentially a divine arrangement God initiated through Rev Oye.
The governor said that while the clergyman was praying, he was asking him to work hard instead of merely praying and asking him to go and sleep, as is familiar with other people.
On how the prayer made the authorities initiate a change in his favour, he said, “Just 48 hours to the election, the returning officer for Abia State was changed, and a woman professor from Owerri, Imo State, was brought to the state. I was a bit panicky, but I didn’t know God was rearranging things using her to replace the former returning officer. Everything was done to influence this woman after the ballots were cast, but she refused to be influenced until the correct results were announced, and they were announced on March 22, 2023.
“I want to thank Rev Sam, his wife and the TTC family for standing by me. I am therefore challenging all young men not to shy from politics because that is where decisions that affect their lives are made.”
