KEY POINTS

• Abia Governor Alex Otti reaffirmed security as the top priority of his administration during a meeting with Naval College alumni.
• He hosted the Alumni Association of the Seventh Regular Course of the Nigeria Naval College ahead of their 40th anniversary reunion in Abia.
• Otti’s Special Adviser on Security, Navy Commander MacDonald Ubah (Rtd), was directed to coordinate support for the event.

Abia State Governor Alex Otti on Wednesday reaffirmed that security remains the top priority of his administration, telling a delegation of Nigeria Naval College alumni that no other policy goal can hold without it.

Otti, who received the Alumni Association of the Seventh Regular Course at Government House in Umuahia, framed security as the foundation for the development push his government has championed since taking office in 2023.

Now his words echo a steady administration line that has tied infrastructure spending, investment drives and social programs to a stable security backdrop across the southeast state. “For us, security is a top priority. Without security, every other thing collapses,” Otti said.

Naval alumni eye Abia for reunion

The delegation, led by Commodore A.O. Bamidele (Rtd), came to brief the governor on plans to host the association’s 40th anniversary reunion in Abia. Specifically, the group sought Otti’s blessing and support for the event.

Otti described the choice of Abia as a “strong vote of confidence” in the transformation underway in the state. Moreover, he pledged that his administration would do everything within its capacity to back the reunion.

Indeed, the governor said the reunion offers another platform to showcase Abia’s progress and to deepen civic ties between the state and Nigeria’s naval establishment.

Coordination through security adviser

Otti directed his Special Adviser on Security, Navy Commander MacDonald Ubah (Rtd), to liaise with the alumni association and ensure smooth collaboration on the event. Ubah, himself an alumnus of the Seventh Regular Course, will anchor logistics and security coverage.

Additionally, the governor used the visit to defend his merit-based appointments, saying Ubah’s selection had nothing to do with the alumni network.

“Without even knowing that he was your course mate, we appointed Commander MacDonald Ubah strictly based on merit,” Otti said. “We recognised his pedigree and competence. If he didn’t merit it, he wouldn’t have been appointed.”

Bamidele praises Umuahia revival

Bamidele, in his remarks, said Umuahia’s transformation under Otti is unmistakable to visitors. However, he stopped short of declaring the work complete, saying the rest of the country is still hearing about the changes.

“When I entered Umuahia yesterday, I saw a new heaven, a place that is totally different. Something is clearly working here, and we want to be part of it,” he said.

Furthermore, Bamidele cited reports that visitors to Aba, the state’s commercial hub, often struggle to recognize the city after recent renewal works. Together, those upgrades have become a calling card for Otti’s administration on the campaign trail and within investor circles.

Today, Otti’s tenure as governor approaches the three-year mark, with capital projects, road rehabilitation and security upgrades dominating the back half of his first term. Meanwhile, his administration has framed Abia’s investment pitch around the security guarantee he repeated this week.

Whether the security narrative holds amid wider regional pressures will shape his re-election conversation. Yet for now, Otti is leaning into the point that, in his words, “without security, every other thing collapses,” and asking allies and visitors to take that promise as the platform on which everything else stands.