Abia, C’River, Nasarawa Swear in Local Governments Chairmen

Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo  in Umuahia,  Bassey Inyang in Calabar and Igbawase Ukumba in Lafia

Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, yesterday  inaugurated the 17 local government Chairmen and their Deputies following their emergence at the November 2, 2024 council poll.

Similarly, the  Cross River State Governor, Senator Bassey  Otu,  inaugurated 18 Local Government Chairmen, and their vice chairmen who emerged victorious at the November 2 local government elections in the state.

Also,  the Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, yesterday  swore in the newly elected 13 Local Government Areas chairmen of the state. 

In Abia, the chairmen and their deputies, christened Mayors and Deputy Mayors by the governor, were elected on the platforms of Zenith Labour Party(ZLP) and Young Progressives Party(YPP) with ZLP producing 15 chairmen while YPP has two.

Speaking at the swearing-in ceremony in Umuahia, Governor Otti justified the overwhelming victory of a virtually unknown ZLP, saying that the 2024 Abia LG poll was not about political parties.

He said that he had assessed the political situation and determined that the council poll was not a political party affair hence “at the beginning of this process, I had charged every interested contestant to join any party of their choice.”

Otti noted that though the elected Council Chairmen “have emerged from different political platforms, the agenda remains the same: Abia first”.

“We have since laid the marker at the State, my expectation is that you will run with the vision and continue the work of the socio-economic transformation of Abia from your various LGAs,” he said.

Otti, who is a Labour Party Governor, also stated that he had encouraged Abia people “to vote the best candidates irrespective of political parties”, a voting behaviour that had been displayed by Abia electorate in the past.

Alluding to the obliteration of LP at in the LG poll, the Abia Governor explained that “I realised that a few parties have leadership crises that I didn’t think should be imported into this process.”

According to him, his knowledge that “our people have always voted candidates and not necessarily parties” made him forget LP and its crisis and gave tacit backing to ZLP.

In Cross River State, chairmen and vice chairmen all emerged on the platform of the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress (APC)..

Speaking at the event, Governor Otu charged the new leaders of the third tier of government with the responsibility of serving their local governments diligently.

He underscored the importance of transparency, accountability, and the ‘People First’ governance approach.

The governor highlighted key priorities for the new leadership to include community development, addressing infrastructure needs, and improving public services at the grassroots level.

“Your victory is a call to action to serve the people of Cross River and deliver on your promises with integrity. We have a goal as a state, and it is important to align with this goal. We want to build our Gross Domestic Product (GDP); we want to attract investment. We want our people to live better. So, it is not a ceremonial office; it is serious business,”  Otu added. 

He noted that as each local government council is birthed in the euphoria of autonomy, there is a corresponding burden of statutory responsibilities as enshrined in the First Schedule of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as a mandate, reminding the new LGA leaders that the resolve to bring government nearer to the people remains inviolable to the present administration.

“As the closest tier of government to the people, the core mandate of every local government council is the provision of basic amenities. The accomplishment of this task shall be a litmus test for the huge confidence the electorate repose in you and a referendum on your capacity to deliver on your campaign promises. 

In  Nasarawa State,  Governor Abdullahi Sule, inaugurated the  elected 13 Local Government Areas chairmen of the state.

He consequently charged them to be transparent and accountable while discharging their duties.

Governor Sule urged them to execute projects and programmes that would have direct bearing on the lives of their people.

Sule, therefore, described the election as one of the most transparent in the state in recent time.

“I call on you to justify the confidence reposed in you by turning around the fortune of your respective Local Government Areas,” he maintained.

Responding on behalf of the newly elected council chairmen, the Chairman of Lafia Local Government Area, Mohammed Haliru, pledged to lead their people with the fear of God.

He also thanked the people of the state for electing them as chairmen of the 13 Local Government Areas of the state.