A petition has been submitted to several countries, including the United States, United Kingdom, and France, requesting that they impose visa restrictions on Abia State Governor Alex Otti. The petition, filed by Eze Chikamnayo, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress and a legal practitioner, alleges that the governor’s administration has failed to provide evidence of how N54 billion was spent on renovating public schools in the state.
Chikamnayo, who is also the convener of the Abia Best Interest Association, addressed a press conference in Abuja, where he stated that the governor and his officials have not provided empirical evidence of the 51 smart schools for which the funds were allocated. Instead, he claimed that they have resorted to diversionary tactics, citing the Abia Universal Basic Education Board’s classroom projects, which are being executed with federal government counterpart funding, as separate from the state government’s smart school projects.
The petitioner argued that the failure to publish details of the smart public school projects, including the list of schools, locations, contractors, and pictures, is a clear indication of systemic corruption and lack of transparency in governance. He noted that the expenditure recorded in the state government’s budget performance reports is different from other financial inflows recorded under the Universal Basic Education Commission and federal intervention programs.
Chikamnayo’s petition to the international community, which includes Germany, China, Australia, Canada, Britain, Switzerland, the European Union, and the African Union, requests that they deny Governor Otti a visa to their countries. This, he hopes, will prevent the governor from traveling abroad and enable him to address the questions surrounding the alleged mismanagement of funds.
The petition highlights concerns about transparency and accountability in the Abia State government, particularly with regards to the allocation of funds for public projects. The international community’s response to the petition remains to be seen, but it underscores the need for governments to be transparent in their financial dealings and to provide accountability to their citizens. As the situation unfolds, it is likely that there will be increased scrutiny of the Abia State government’s handling of public funds and its commitment to transparency and good governance.
