The Senator representing Abia North Senatorial District, Orji Uzor Kalu, has openly declared that he will work against the re-election bid of Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, marking a clear breakdown in their once-cordial relationship.
Kalu made this known on Thursday while addressing supporters at his country home in Igbere. He expressed disappointment over what he described as an unwarranted attack from the governor’s camp, stating that until recently, he had regarded Otti as a personal friend and had deliberately refrained from criticizing his administration.
According to the former governor, the turning point came after a statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Njoku Okaoha, criticized him for publicly declaring his intention to support President Bola Tinubu and mobilize Abia State for the All Progressives Congress (APC). Kalu said the statement angered him and effectively ended the goodwill he had maintained toward the current administration.
He stressed that his political affiliation with the APC should not be a basis for hostility, describing the remarks from the governor’s media team as provocative and unacceptable. Kalu argued that statements made by a governor’s spokesperson inevitably reflect the position of the governor himself.
“For two years, I never attacked the state government because I considered the governor my friend,” Kalu said. “But a few days ago, his press secretary issued a statement against me. No governor can deny responsibility for what his press secretary says. That was the first attack.”
The senator explained that his response was simply to reaffirm his loyalty to his party, noting that while he and his supporters worked toward Otti’s victory in the 2023 governorship election, that support would no longer be extended.
“I am a member of the APC, and I will work for the APC to win,” he said. “We supported him before, but we won’t do that again. There is nothing wrong with working for one’s party, and I should not be insulted for that.”
Kalu also challenged claims that Governor Otti has delivered exceptional performance since assuming office. He argued that the administration has not embarked on any major new infrastructure projects, alleging instead that it has focused mainly on rehabilitating roads constructed during his own tenure as governor between 1999 and 2007.
“I don’t see this so-called outstanding performance,” Kalu said. “The roads being repaired today are roads I built years ago. I have not seen any major new road projects. In fact, the funds the governor received in just four months are comparable to what I had access to in eight years.”
He further accused the current administration of neglecting rural and agricultural communities, claiming that his own constituency projects as a senator include newly constructed access roads to farmlands—areas he says the governor has largely ignored.
“As a senator, I am opening up brand-new farmland roads,” he stated. “I have not seen the governor go into these rural areas. In my first two years as governor, I achieved things many people thought were impossible in Abia State.”
Reflecting on his time in office, Kalu highlighted policies such as free education and free healthcare, which he said earned him national recognition. He recalled that former President Olusegun Obasanjo once described him as an “action governor,” a label he said was based on visible achievements rather than public relations.
In closing, the senator dismissed the wave of positive commentary surrounding the current administration on social media, insisting that real governance is judged by tangible impact rather than online narratives.
“Governance is not done on social media,” Kalu said. “It is done on the ground, at the right time, by the people you see here.”
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