Abia traders and business community have vowed that no amount of political subterfuge , grandstanding and blackmail by yesterday’s political buccaneers under any so-called Coalition will derail the wheel of transformative governance being experienced in the state under the leadership of Governor Alex Otti.
This is as the President General of the Abia state Amalgamated Traders Association ASMATA Chief Alphonsus Udeigbo expressed the traders readiness and unflinching commitment towards ensuring the success of the re-election bid Otti in 2027 .
The Abia traders position is coming against the backdrop of the convergence of the Senator Orji Uzor Kalu-led Abia opposition Coalition under the aegis of ” Forum of Former Executive , National and State Legislative Members” with the aim of ousting Governor Otti from the state’s seat of power in 2027 .
The Coalition which has two other past Governors-Senator T A Orji and Dr Victor Okezie Ikpeazu at as members , at its emergency meeting held at the Umuahia country home of Senator Orji penultimate week while reaffirming its commitment to the second term ambition of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the success of all All Progressive Congress APC candidates in Abia state , however vowed to ensure the ouster of Otti as the Abia state Governor in 2027 .
But ,in statement on Friday January 16 ,2026 Chief Udeigbo while dismissing the coalition as the shameless gathering of agents of underdevelopment and darkness ,urged Governor Otti not to be distracted by their orchestrated antics.
According to the ASMATA President , Abians having seen the light under less than two and a half years of Otti’s administration ,are not in a hurry to go back to the years of unmitigated misgovernance and mismanagement of state resources under the so-called Coalition promoters .
He described the Coalition as the gathering of spent forces ,only out to seek relevance and rehabilitation ,after 24 years of mismanaging Abia resources.
” We want to make it clear that Abia traders , business community and in deed the overwhelming majority of Abians are sincerely happy with the administration of His Excellency, Dr Alex Chioma Otti for giving us hope after over two decades of gross misgovernance and mismanagement of Abia state resources .
” We feel insulted when those behind the several years of suspension of development and ruination in Abia state , rather than apologizing to the people ,are now grandstanding to the extent of impudently assuming the role of the ” decider of the fate of the Abia state and its citizens
” We condemn and reject in its entirety ,the move by the so-called Coalition promoters to drag Abia state back to the period of darkness ,by way of shamelessly gathering against someone whom God has assigned the task of setting Abia state free.
” Much as we concede that democracy thrives under free speech and association ,we however warn against any deliberate act aimed at reminding the people ,the inglorious years of the looters of Abia patrimony .
” We consider it as a deliberate act of provocation ,for the so-called Coalition elements to threaten to abort the new Abia dream ,after pillaging the state for 24 years” Udeigbo stated.
The ASMATA President however noted that traders , members of the business community and the generality of Abians are ever ready to protect the ongoing transformational processes in the state , using their only known power- the Permanent Voters Card PVC come 2027 .
” Our advice to the so-called Coalition promoters is for them to just withdraw to their shelves and allow the ongoing transformational processes in Abia state to go on unhindered .
” But ,if they insist on trying to truncate our dream as a people ,we will let them understand that Abia state has since moved ,and that no amount of the gathering of agents of darkness will take us back to Egypt.
” We therefore use this opportunity to assure the people’s Governor, Dr Alex Otti that ,Abia traders , business community and all men and women of goodwill are solidly behind him .
” We urge the Governor not to be distracted by the unholy gathering of any coalition under any name so-called , because they have already failed in their evil plans of aborting the people’s mandate” the ASMATA President added.
