{"id":236312,"date":"2025-10-06T07:09:24","date_gmt":"2025-10-06T07:09:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.name.ng\/news\/abia-govt-replies-benjamin-kalu-we-govern-with-facts-not-false-figures\/"},"modified":"2025-10-06T07:09:24","modified_gmt":"2025-10-06T07:09:24","slug":"abia-govt-replies-benjamin-kalu-we-govern-with-facts-not-false-figures","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/abia-govt-replies-benjamin-kalu-we-govern-with-facts-not-false-figures\/","title":{"rendered":"Abia Govt Replies Benjamin Kalu: \u2018We Govern with Facts, Not False Figures\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div>\n<h4 data-start=\"4743\" data-end=\"5040\"><em><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/abia\">Abia <\/a>Government has reacted strongly to statements by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, accusing him of spreading false claims about Governor Otti\u2019s administration. Ferdinand Ekeoma, the Governor\u2019s media aide, said the remarks were politically motivated and based on ignorance of real economic data. Read Details ..\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/h4>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"The Truth About Sex Toys Nobody Talks About | Ifenkili Podcast\" width=\"740\" height=\"416\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/MJkJph-Q-Tw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"kvezio kvezio-clearfix kvezio-post-inline kvezio-float-center kvezio-align-center kvezio-column-1\">\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Who Cheats More: Married Men or Women? | IFENKILI (PREMIUM IGBO CONTENT)\" width=\"740\" height=\"416\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/_kcF0IcrtLU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><em><strong>\u2026 Special Adviser to Governor <a href=\"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/Alex\">Alex <\/a>Otti, Ferdinand Ekeoma, defends Abia\u2019s performance record, says Deputy Speaker\u2019s comments show lack of economic understanding.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/abia\">Abia <\/a>State Government has responded to recent comments made by the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu, describing them as \u201cbaseless and misleading,\u201d and an attempt to distort facts about the ongoing transformation in the state under Governor <a href=\"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/Alex\">Alex <\/a>C. Otti, OFR.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"code-block code-block-2\" style=\"margin: 8px 0; clear: both;\">\n<p><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>In a statement signed by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Publicity, Mr. Ferdinand Ekeoma, the government said it was unfortunate that a lawmaker of Kalu\u2019s stature could \u201cdisplay such an embarrassing level of economic and financial ignorance\u201d in his recent public remarks comparing Governor Otti\u2019s performance with that of his predecessors.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>According to the statement, Kalu\u2019s claim that the <a href=\"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/abia\">Abia <\/a>government receives \u20a638 billion monthly from the Federation Account is \u201cfalse and deliberately misleading.\u201d The government clarified that the state\u2019s total Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) receipts for the first eight months of 2025, including allocations to Local Governments, stood at \u20a6125 billion \u2014 a far cry from the figures quoted by the Deputy Speaker.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Ekeoma explained that since Governor Otti assumed office, his administration has operated with transparency, accountability, and prudence despite the economic realities facing the country. He further stated that the drastic fall in the value of the naira \u2014 from \u20a6460 to the dollar in April 2023 to about \u20a61,500 in 2025 \u2014 has significantly affected the real value of funds available to states.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor someone in Kalu\u2019s position, it is disappointing to ignore basic economic facts. A project that cost \u20a61 billion in 2022 now costs nearly \u20a64 billion today due to currency devaluation and inflation,\u201d Ekeoma said.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"kvezio kvezio-clearfix kvezio-post-middle kvezio-float-center kvezio-align-center kvezio-column-1\">\n<div id=\"kvezio-178990-541449341\" class=\"kvezio-container kvezio-type-image \" itemscope=\"\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/WPAdBlock\" data-adid=\"178990\" data-type=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" class=\"kvezio-image\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/afnews.sumofunnel.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/cover-1-scaled.jpg?w=1170&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"news paper\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The statement also highlighted key achievements under the Otti administration, including the increase in the state\u2019s minimum wage from \u20a630,000 to between \u20a670,000 and \u20a674,000, as well as the expansion of the verified state workforce from about 31,000 to over 67,000 employees \u2014 excluding more than 5,000 newly recruited teachers.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Ekeoma accused Kalu of keeping silent when \u201cinjustice and neglect\u201d were meted out to <a href=\"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/abia\">Abia <\/a>workers under previous administrations, suggesting that his sudden criticism of Otti was driven by political ambition ahead of the 2027 elections.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The statement further questioned why Kalu avoided mentioning the administration of his \u201cformer boss and benefactor,\u201d Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, when comparing Otti with ex-Governors T.A. Orji and Okezie Ikpeazu.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt is ironic that Kalu finds his voice only now. He should know that leadership is about service, not showmanship,\u201d Ekeoma added.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Concluding, the <a href=\"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/abia\">Abia <\/a>Government urged the Deputy Speaker to focus on his legislative responsibilities and to seek proper understanding of governance and fiscal realities before making public statements.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe crowd that welcomed Governor Otti and President Tinubu\u2019s representative in Aba were not rented. They are everyday Abians who have seen a new direction in leadership,\u201d Ekeoma stated.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>He advised Kalu to \u201crelax, take a cold drink, and wait for campaign time,\u201d insisting that the present administration remains focused on delivering good governance to the people of <a href=\"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/abia\">Abia <\/a>State.<\/p>\n<p><h3 class=\"jp-relatedposts-headline\"><em>Related<\/em><\/h3>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"code-block code-block-1\" style=\"margin: 8px 0; clear: both;\">\n<h3><strong>Listen to top Radio Stations in <a href=\"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/abia\">Abia <\/a>State CLICK HERE<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<p><!-- CONTENT END 1 -->\n<\/div>\n<p>https:\/\/afnews.ng\/abia-govt-replies-benjamin-kalu-we-govern-with-facts\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Abia Government has reacted strongly to statements by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, accusing him of spreading false claims about Governor Otti\u2019s administration. Ferdinand Ekeoma, the Governor\u2019s media aide, said the remarks were politically motivated and based on ignorance of real economic data. Read Details ..\u00a0 \u00a0 \u2026 Special Adviser to Governor Alex Otti, Ferdinand Ekeoma, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":236313,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[176],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-236312","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-abia"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/otti-and-ben.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/236312","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=236312"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/236312\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/236313"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=236312"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=236312"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abiaradiostations.com.ng\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=236312"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}