Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti has revealed that his administration has paid about N90 billion out of the N191billion debt it inherited on assumption of office in 2023.
Governor Otti stated this at his monthly media chat tagged: “Governor Alex Otti Speaks to Abians,” in Umuahia, where he added that his administration had not borrowed any money.
“Yet, we have continued to fix roads, provide quality healthcare, renovate and upgrade schools, and tackle insecurity among others,” he noted.
The governor also revealed that the administration plans to introduce electric buses for both intra and inter city transportation to cushion the effects of removal of fuel subsidy.
He also used the forum to warn that the administration would ensure the arrest and prosecution of suspected pension fraud syndicate in the state.
According to him, the administration will swing into action once it gathered enough evidence and information about the individuals regardless of their status in the state.
Otti expressed regrets that some opposition members had been castigating the administration over its decision to investigate, arrest and prosecute the suspects.
“We will continue with our efforts to sanitise the civil service. I’m sure you would have heard some reports about some civil servants who were involved in pension fraud.
“From the report I got, about ten or eleven of them. Some of them are outside the country. We are going to repatriate them to answer to the state of their sins,” Otti vowed.
