Ikpeazu’s former Commissioner, Otti’s aide trade words over contract costs

Former Okezie Ikpeazu administration trade and investment commissioner John Okiyi Kalu and Governor Alex Otti’s Special Adviser on media and publicity Ferdinand Ekeoma have resumed their media war.

Former Information Commissioner Okiyi Kalu has lately taken to Twitter to criticise the spending of the Otti administration on road construction contracts. Kalu served in this role during the previous administration in the state.

In addition, Kalu advocated for the publishing in the newspapers of cash coming into the State from the federal allocations, which, he claimed, would align with Governor Otti’s election-year efforts.

The media adviser to Governor Otti, Mr. Ferdinand Ekeoma, responded to the requests by saying that the current administration in Abia does not require any media propaganda to remind residents about the state’s successes.

Ekeoma, disputing Kalu’s assertions that the administration he served in was open and honest about its finances, claimed that the local government area (LGA) of Ohafia, where Okiyi Kalu was born and raised, had received over 18 billion naira in allocations from the federation account over the course of the eight years in question.

Part of Ekeoma’s reply read as follows:

The fact that Governor Otti’s administration doesn’t go on the air and social media to proclaim and disclose the amount of money received as monthly allocation was cited as one of the reasons for John Okiyi Kalu’s childish assaults on Otti.

Let me remind him that the Federal Government publishes each state’s monthly allocation as required by law. So, what is this mysterious magazine that he keeps referring to?

Because “we haven’t seen the economic and developmental impacts of such fake and deceitful publications since 1999,” he said, “what Abians expect from the State government is to use what is due the State to work for Abians and not to dramatize on social media and on the pages of newspapers in the name of publications.”

The media assistant added that, in accordance with the norms and regulations in place at the time, the State government was required to make public the budget implementations of various MDAs through the proper channels.