MEDIA PARLEY: GOV OTTI TO OFFSET SALARY ARREARS OF PARASTATALS

REPORTER: PEACE AGBO

Abia State Government says it is looking for more enduring solutions to the economic challenges of the people in the state.

Speaking at the monthly Media Parley tagged “Governor Alex Otti Speaks to Abians,” Governor Otti said the government had embarked on various intervention programmes to ensure that the effect of the harsh economy was reduced.

The Governor, who said his emergence was to impact lives positively, explained that he had cleared arrears owed 12,500 Abia pensioners since 2014, amounting to nine billion naira.

He noted that henceforth every pensioner in the state would receive their full pension on 28th of every month.

Governor Otti also gave assurance that the salary arrears of some government agencies and parastatals, including ASCETA, ASUBEB, and Abia-line Network, owed by previous administrations would be paid soon as they were being keyed into the system.

On health, the Governor noted that 80 medical doctors from United States were in the state on a free medical mission, including carrying out surgeries on indigent residents.

On road reconstruction in the state, Governor Otti said nine to thirty roads under reconstruction were in different stages of completion as government is set to fix 11.5km Osisioma-Ekeakpara- NNPC depot road that leads to the industrial zones of the state.

He noted that the state government had awarded a contract to salvage the Ovom- Ogbor-Hill gully erosion site and other parts of the state with erosion sites through the support of Ecological fund.

He noted that in a bid to ensure sanity across major cities of the state, a joint taskforce had been set up to deal with the issues of touting, traffic offences, wrong parking, and extortion among other anomalies.

EDITED BY CHUKWUBUIKE MADU