By: Ferdinand Ekeoma
Do you recognise this building from the Pictures?
Well, a few months ago, I shared pictures from this building belonging to Ministry of Budget and Planning.
The place was in a state of absolute decay and dilapidation. It looked horrible, dingy, and very unconducive for decent staff to budget and plan.
If you walk into the Old Ministry of Budget and Planning building, you’ll see workers sitting together at the entrance near the staircase leading to the main building, gisting and doing nothing. The only thing they have in front of them are lockers and some pieces of paper. Over the years, they have been rendered unproductive, as they neither have offices to work from nor job descriptions to work with.
Beyond the beautiful reconstruction that has taken place, the place is being fully furnished to have the necessary amenities and facilities for effective service delivery while the Ministry of Budget and Planning is already working out modalities to retrain the staff and equip them to become productive and useful to themselves and to the state
In line with the vision and directive of His Excellency, Governor Alex Otti, key building infrastructures in the state are being rebuilt and retrofitted to provide accommodations for staff and heads of different MDAs and create decent working environments that would have the alluring ambiance synonymous with the New Abia standard.
The Alex Otti led-government is intentional about ensuring systematic and consistent rebuilding of key infrastructures in the state as a way of erasing the old filthy signature of unseriousness and mediocrity made prominent by conspicuous decay and deterioration of key government infrastructures, that’s why structures like the Abandoned JAAC Building, the Completely decayed and abandoned Old Secretariat, the New Secretariat, the decayed Emeka Omerua Government Guest House, Government Banquet Hall, Appointees Political Block, the Deputy Governor’s Office Building, just to mention but a few completed projects were rebuilt and retrofitted. Of course, our Hospitals and Schools are beginning to wear new looks, courtesy of ongoing reconstruction and retrofitting taking place, to the admittance, admiration and appreciation of Abians across board.
In the next few days, you’ll see more inspiring pictures of massive reconstruction of building infrastructures going on in different parts of the state.
In an exclusive interview he granted some years ago, Governor Alex Otti had this to say “At a point in your life, you start asking yourself certain important questions. You’ve made a success of your career. You can afford the life you want. But you look at where you’re coming from — your state of origin — and realise that millions couldn’t even afford the basic necessities of life. You asked further questions: “There have been governments in this state for 16 years from 1999. Sixteen years of democracy, of civilian rule. Why are the people not better for it? Why is there still large scale poverty? Then it was 16 years, now it’s getting to 24 years.”
You then ask even further questions: “Knowing that you’re privileged, would you want to just live for yourself and family alone when you can actually live for more people and help improve their lives?” There’s a limit to how far your personal resources can go. Since successive administrations in the state were unable to improve the lives of our people, I decided to go do that myself. This was why I got into politics —to carry out one of the basic functions of government, which is the welfare of the people”.
Ladies and gentlemen, you now know the thoughts behind the Governor’s thoughtfulness and intention to inspire Abia and Abians to succeed.
Ferdinand Ekeoma
September 13, 2024……
