OPEN LETTER TO GOVERNOR ALEX OTTI, On the $263.8 Million ( approximately N400B) AfDB Loan and the Future of Abia State

ONN Abia State 16.07.2025

Your Excellency,

I write you today, not just as the Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Abia State, but as a concerned son of the soil, a stakeholder in the Abia project, and a voice for thousands of our people who deserve clarity, truth, and responsible governance.

The recent announcement by the African Development Bank (AfDB) of a $263.8 million integrated infrastructure development project in Abia State has taken many by surprise—not because we doubt the potential value of infrastructure in Aba and Umuahia—but because of the deep contradiction it reveals about your public posture on debt.

You had categorically denied on multiple occasions—through media interactions and public briefings—that your administration was seeking loans. Now, the very administration that claimed self-sufficiency has quietly accepted what is arguably the largest loan facility in the state’s history.

Your Excellency, the people of Abia are not against development. We welcome roads, drainage systems, urban renewal. But we reject a governance model that masks debts in silence, dismisses the need for accountability, and treats the electorate as a side audience rather than partners in governance.

We therefore demand answers to the following:

1. What are the terms of this $263.8 million loan? What is the interest rate, tenure, repayment structure, and what mechanisms have been put in place to hedge against exchange rate risks?

2. Why was the public kept in the dark until AfDB’s announcement? If this loan is in the best interest of the people, why wasn’t it openly discussed with stakeholders or the State House of Assembly?

3. What is Abia’s current debt profile? With this new commitment, how sustainable is our financial future?

4. Who are the contractors? Will there be transparency in procurement, and will local firms and professionals be allowed to participate?

This loan, Your Excellency, if not handled with absolute transparency, could mortgage the future of Abia’s next generation. We cannot build roads today and saddle our children with unbearable debts tomorrow.

We urge you to do the honorable thing:

• Make public the full loan agreement.

• Brief the State Assembly and civil society groups.

• Ensure an open procurement process.

• Establish a citizens’ monitoring team for the project.

This is not a partisan call; it is a patriotic duty. History has taught us that great leaders are not only remembered for what they built, but also for how they built it—through openness, prudence, and truth.

We urge you to write your name in history as a Governor who respected the intelligence and dignity of his people, not one who wrapped public debt in silence.

Abia deserves progress—but progress built on trust, not on secrets.

Yours in service to Abia,

Elder Abraham Amah

State Chairman

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Abia State

16th July 2025