Residents and former residents of Abia State have begun sharing before-and-after photos and videos online comparing the condition of the state to what it was before the emergence of Governor Alex Otti.
Many of those posting the images described years of infrastructural decay that led to abandoned properties, collapsed businesses and worsening living conditions across urban centres, particularly Aba and Umuahia. The posts have been accompanied by reflections on the state’s political history, including accusations that longstanding political actors contributed to the decline.
Some users referenced the state’s past leadership, recalling that former governor Orji Uzor Kalu was once sentenced to 12 years in prison before he was later released by the Supreme Court. His successor, Theodore A. Orji, who served under Kalu as Chief of Staff, reportedly won the 2007 governorship election from detention. Reports by Daily Trust noted that Orji, then of the PPA, became the first Nigerian governor to be elected from jail since Omisore, while awaiting trial at Kirikiri Maximum Prisons for alleged money laundering, fraud and conspiracy. The EFCC had accused him of being a conduit through which Abia State was defrauded during Kalu’s administration.
As online users circulated clips of neglected infrastructure, blocked drainage channels, decayed roads and shuttered businesses, the narrative expanded to criticism of federal legislators from Abia. Residents posted images allegedly depicting constituency projects executed during Orji Uzor Kalu’s time in the Senate.
The renewed scrutiny also drew commentary from public figures. Media personality Noble Igwe, who grew up in Aba, joined the discussion and criticised long-serving politicians who held power in Abia from 1999 until Otti’s emergence. Igwe specifically called out the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, noting that despite decades in politics, he recently installed a 1,000 kVA power project for the people of Bende.
The online conversation has been driven largely by Abia indigenes who now live in other parts of Nigeria and abroad, many of whom said they left due to economic stagnation and inadequate infrastructure.
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