The governor-elect of Abia State, Alex Otti, gave his acceptance speech on Wednesday, moments after his victory was made official by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The Labour Party (LP) candidate was declared winner after a dramatic collation of results for the Abia State governorship election held last Saturday.
With a tally of 175,467 votes, the three-time contender defeated runner-up Okey Ahiwe of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who polled 88,529 votes.
“With deep humility and a profound sense of responsibility, I wholeheartedly accept your mandate to be your chief servant for the next four years,” Otti told the people of Abia in his first post-victory address.
“I dedicate this victory to God the Father, the almighty who makes everything beautiful in His time. I also dedicate this to the millions of Abia citizens who have been the unfortunate victims of bad governance these past decades.”
The governor-elect recognised the huge expectations of millions in Abia whom he said had been denied the dividends of democracy and good governance for a long time.
Appreciating every Abian and non-indigene who participated in the election, he noted that his victory came after three attempts to become governor to implement his long-held vision of rebuilding Abia State as truly God’s Own State.
“In the words of one Labour Party stalwart, the siege is over,” he said.
Otti saluted the industry and the resourcefulness of all Abians, religious and traditional institutions, civil servants, the working class, pensioners, the business community, the physically challenged members of our society, and indeed everyone that wishes Abia well.
According to him, there shall be no discrimination whatsoever in the amenities that each person is able to access in his government.
“I made a firm promise to all civil servants and pensioners owed salaries, pensions, and emoluments that an immediate payment plan will be put in place to ensure that this gets priority attention and that by the end of this year, every outstanding salaries and pensions would have been paid,” he said.
The governor-elect reassured the people that he would run an open, transparent and accountable government, devoid of waste and profligacy.
“Our doors will remain open and our channels of communication will remain unfettered so that your worthy contributions and suggestions will be a guiding light as we together navigate the thorny path of rebuilding the state and transforming same for the benefit of all,” he added.