Otti to opposition: Use your money to help people — don’t waste it appealing tribunal verdict

Alex Otti, governor of Abia, has advised his political opponents to join him in developing the state. 

On Friday, the election tribunal dismissed the petition filed by Okey Ahiwe, candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), against the victory of Otti.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared Otti, candidate of the Labour Party (LP), as winner of the March 18 election.

Otti polled 175,466 votes to defeat Ahiwe who scored 88,529 votes.

In a statement issued on Saturday to celebrate his victory at the tribunal, Otti expressed his gratitude to the residents of the state for their unwavering support during and after the election.

The governor asked his opponents to save themselves the financial burden of appealing the tribunal’s verdict. He advised that they should instead use the money to help their communities.

“My advice to my opponents is that this is a good time to sheathe their swords and join hands with me to develop our state, Abia,” the statement reads.

“Anyhow you slice and dice it, it costs a lot of money to engage in litigation.

“While I will not ask them to bring the money to me, I would advise that each of them have villages that are dilapidating, without roads, without water and I believe that their communities will appreciate it if they would channel those resources into building roads in their villages and communities.

“If you follow the election and everything that happened thereafter, you will know that quite frankly, this victory shouldn’t have been contested in the first place, but then, I also do not deny my opponents their rights to go to court.”

The governor also thanked the jurists and “all those who ensured that justice prevailed in the end”.

Otti said he is committed to improving the living standards of residents through the provision of social amenities and infrastructure.