The Renaissance Front of Abia State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the party’s former State Chairman, Senator Emma Nwaka, have rubbished allegations of fraud levelled against the party by former All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) gubernatorial candidate in the state, Dr. Alex Otti.

A statement by the Renaissance Front titled, ‘A Riposte to Alex Otti’s Hubris’, took exception to Alex Otti’s remarks at his Arochukwu country home where he hosted some members of his current political party, during which he was quoted as having said: “I spent so much money when I was in the PDP but at the end I discovered they are all fraudulent in PDP. I was duped by the PDP, so I had to leave the party for them.”

Abia PDP Renaissance Front said in response: “But for this mendacious statement, we would have ignored the peripatetic, political rolling stone called Alex Otti. Incidentally, the sojourn of Otti in PDP coincided with the period Senator Emma Nwaka, an iconic political figure whose zero tolerance for bribery is well known, held sway as State Chairman of Abia PDP.

“It is interesting to note that many years after he ceased to be the State Chairman of Abia PDP, Senator Emma Nwaka's incorruptibility is still spoken about with reverence and admiration. So, if there is one person who should know whether Otti was duped it is Emma Nwaka as the symbol of the party at the material time hence we of Abia PDP Renaissance Front as his admirers decided to confront him with Otti’s sweeping allegation.

“Nwaka told us that at no point did he negotiate with Otti or coerce him to part with his money for his use or funding of the party. He challenged Otti to repudiate his claim.

“Being satisfied with Nwaka’s position, we advise Otti to learn to live with his self-inflicted political woes. Other stakeholders we spoke with told us that Otti’s problem is that he is not a team player; it is either his way or no other. They said he was rebuffed and told to his face that PDP ticket was not for sale. Being a moneybag, he stormed into APGA where he created so much bad blood and muscled his way to grab the ticket. But by then his antics had so weakened the party and alienated influential party faithful resulting in his running a one-man show. Against that background, you just wonder how he expected to win.

“What we realised is that Otti’s nature is not attuned to the collective process of decision making in politics. Otti is more at home in the corporate world where with eyes trained on the balance sheet he hires and fires with scant regard to the collateral damage of his actions.

“Someone should tell Otti that desperadoes hardly succeed in politics. It speaks volumes that one man has two country homes in one state. When it suits him, Abia Central becomes his place of origin. Today, he has gone back to his other country home in Arochukwu in Abia North which we are sure when the time comes he’ll claim as his ancestral home so he can bid for the entitlement of Abia North people and if he fails, we won’t be surprised to hear that he has migrated to Ebonyi State, all within the short period of his uneventful uninspiring political life.

“Having left PDP, Otti should leave the party alone. It doesn’t speak well of Otti that he speaks ill of every establishment he has worked with. Many years after leaving Diamond Bank, he is still sponsoring diatribes against the now defunct bank. Today, many years after his departure from PDP, Otti is still busy excoriating the party.

“We are sure that the only reason why he spared APGA during the reception in Arochukwu was because of the presence of Senator Victor Umeh. APC should brace up for it will be their turn next.

“Referring to people like Otti, our people would say that a man who fights at every market he steps into must be a trouble-maker because there is no way all the people at various markets will conspire against one man.

“Finally, our advice to Alex Otti is: if he knows how to pound, he should direct his pestle into the mortar or keep hitting it against his laps.”

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