Former Abia State governors, including Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, have pushed back against Governor Alex Otti’s decision to abolish pensions and lifetime benefits for past governors and their deputies, describing the move as unnecessary and politically motivated.
Governor Otti recently signed into law a bill repealing the Abia State Governors and Deputy Governors Pension Law, effectively scrapping entitlements such as life pensions, housing, vehicles, security details and other allowances previously provided to former office holders.
The governor said the decision was aimed at promoting fiscal discipline and redirecting scarce resources to critical sectors, including the payment of arrears owed to civil servants and ordinary pensioners.
Former Governors’ Reaction
Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, who governed Abia State between 1999 and 2007, alongside former governors Theodore Orji and Okezie Ikpeazu, said they never benefited from the pension law being repealed. They argued that the abolition was therefore symbolic and misleading, creating a false impression that ex-governors had been draining state resources through pension payments.
In a joint response conveyed through separate statements, the former governors maintained that no pensions or special allowances were paid to them by the Abia State Government after leaving office. They accused the current administration of weaponising the issue for political optics rather than addressing deeper structural problems in the state’s pension system.
Theodore Orji also dismissed claims circulating on social media suggesting that former leaders were threatening unrest over the repeal, insisting that such reports were false and inflammatory.
Governor Otti’s action has nevertheless received praise from civil society groups and governance advocates, who see the repeal as part of a broader national push to end what they describe as excessive post-tenure benefits for political office holders. Supporters argue that the move sends a strong message at a time when many states struggle to meet basic obligations to workers and retirees.
