Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has said he will neither become a political godfather nor impose a successor on the state after completing his second term in office in 2031.
Otti made the declaration in Umuahia while receiving the former Social Democratic Party, SDP, governorship candidate, Mrs Ngozi Johnson Chukwunenye, and her supporters into the Labour Party, LP.
According to the governor, leadership succession should be based on merit and competence rather than a “sit-tight” culture.
He expressed confidence that whoever succeeds him would be better equipped to provide quality leadership for the people of Abia State.
“The most important thing you can give a people is good governance.“And once people test good governance, it will be very difficult for them to allow you to take them back.“So, if you are afraid that we will go back to Egypt, it will never happen. What I can assure you is that, by the time I’m done, the person who will succeed me will be better than me.“I don’t want to be a godfather, and I don’t tolerate godfathers.“We will all sit down, look at everybody and say, ‘Who is the best person for this job?’ Then all of us will agree, and we will campaign for him.“He will win, and we will take a back seat,” Otti said.