A Call to Lead, A Call to Serve

 A Call to Lead, A Call to Serve

Being the Text of an Address Presented by Governor Alex C. Otti, OFR, at the Graduation Ceremony of the First Set of Participants at the 2025 Abia Leadership Academy in Umuahia on Wednesday, August 20, 2025 

Protocols 

1. Excellence in leadership, like in all worthy endeavors, is a product of effective preparation. The ability to consistently make the right call in the midst of competing demands and contrasting opinions cannot happen by accident. Societies and institutions fail and succeed on the strength of the investments they make in leadership development. While there can be several explanations for the development struggles of many societies across the world, one constant fixture in most underdeveloped communities is the quality of leadership.

2. Leadership, as we learnt through a careful study of history, is developed by challenging the mind, taming its base instincts and consciously chasing the dreams that we hold dear. That is the philosophy and foundational principle of the Abia Leadership Academy. This morning, I have come to personally share in the joy of the first batch of the pioneer class on the successful completion of their programme. I am proud of what you have achieved and I want to congratulate you for the new skills you have acquired and the friendships you have built. I followed the programme keenly over the last 7 days and got daily reports from my team on the key activities as they happened. I am happy to announce that I am satisfied with your output, good behaviour and enthusiasm. 

3. One common mistake before now was to assume that leadership was the exclusive preserve of a few select individuals or a position of authority. This erroneous idea partly explains the current chaos in our society as the culture of selfishness and nonchalance gained a quick foothold. It is sad that in most places, people no longer care, refusing to be accountable for anything. The new philosophy of social indifference explains why our educational institutions stopped being citadels of excellence. The refusal to correct and redirect those who err is partly the reason many no longer know what is socially acceptable and what is morally repugnant. Things fell apart because we refused to uphold the values that once held our society together. We got to this very bad patch because elders who ought to be beacons of moral uprightness began to bow at the altar of materialism just as many religious leaders abandoned their callings for quick gains. 

4. Individually and collectively, it would be difficult to exonerate ourselves from the unfortunate turn of events that disfigured our society. The good news this morning is that we have actively taken a conscious step to redirect the psyche and mental energy of our young people to the values and standards that once defined our communities. We are a courageous people, the ones who do not accept things as given but challenge assumptions and interrogate beliefs. Our gains come from honest enterprises, we grow in our vocations through discipline and when we try and fail, we do not throw our hands up in surrender; we simply dust ourselves up and try again, and again until we get the outcome that we seek for that is our way as expressed in our philosophical sayings and in the names we give our children. In essence, we are a community of leaders with a long history of reshaping reality by the sheer force of will. 

5. The Abia Leadership Academy has been set up to begin the process of returning us to the ideas and values that made us distinct as a people in the wider human community. We were quite meticulous in making all the key decisions on how the Academy would run especially the choice of resource persons, structure of curriculum and post-graduation support. We are committed to getting it right with the younger generation otherwise our wider development efforts would be in jeopardy. 

6. The 16 to 20 years age bracket for the participants, the adoption of computer-based testing and oral interviews in the selection of candidates and the choice of Government College Umuahia for the training are all aligned to the most important outcomes that we seek to achieve. We are particular about developing the leadership aptitude of our young ones, guiding them to think broadly and deeply, to understand the values of empathy and good neighborliness, and then activate their minds to believe that they are as good as their peers from across the world — that they are not constrained by the limitations of their environment. The truth is that in each person are multiple seeds of infinite possibilities, what set the highflyers apart from those who fail to reach their truest potential are what we feed the mind, and how we respond to momentary setbacks. I believe that by walking on the hallowed grounds of Government College Umuahia, rightly nicknamed “Eton of the East,” a new consciousness must have been birthed in the young minds of the members of the pioneer class of the Abia Leadership Academy. 

7. We are sending you forth, not as you came, but as light-bearers to your peers, in your communities and wherever you go. You have been called, not to raise your shoulders in arrogance but to elevate your vision, to ask questions that stir the mind and ultimately, dedicate yourselves to the cause of building a society that works for all. The State Government is committing generous resources to this training but it is an investment that would ultimately pay off if you diligently apply the important lessons that you have learnt here in Umuahia. You are no longer ordinary because from this moment, you now belong to an elite corps of thinkers, visionaries and goal-getters who will determine the course of events in your communities. Your participation at this programme has stripped you of the privilege to complain or make excuses for failure. The only thing we expect to hear from you after now are solutions because as you have heard, leadership is a call to achieve what was previously thought unattainable. 

8. Over the next few weeks, the Project Planning Committee would map out how the 1, 000 of you who shall pass through this academy between now and the first week of September can be sent to various secondary and tertiary institutions to share what you have learnt and establish special leadership hubs in all parts of the State. What you have learnt is therefore not for you alone, it is for every young person in Abia, but you shall be the vehicle to drive the new consciousness of responsibility and service amongst young people across the State. We shall track your progress and those who excel shall be exposed to further training opportunities. Our target is to consciously train thousands of young people over the next few years. The implication is that each of you shall have a responsibility to mentor at least one new person with dedication every month, sharing what you have learnt and reaching out to your own mentors when you need support. Recall also that when I announced the take-off of this initiative last July, I made it clear that this training shall be regular and all who successfully complete the programme properly certificated. The timing and modalities for the next round of training shall be announced at the end of this phase of the exercise in September. 

9. The Abia Leadership Academy is closely linked to our overarching outlook for education and human capital development. This explains the focus on students. We want to give Abia students an edge and prepare them for the realities of the world they are going to function in. Beyond the technical skills we acquire in schools, I consider leadership — the ability to work with people and pool resources to achieve favourable outcomes — to be the most important skill any human being can acquire and develop. As you may be aware, we have recruited and posted thousands of new teachers to meet the manpower needs of our schools; we are also improving the physical environment to support effective teaching and learning. Currently, we are working to review the curriculum to ensure that what is being taught in our schools are in sync with the realities of the time. Let me once again re-echo my promise that we shall give our children every support they need to achieve their potential to the fullest. 

10. Let me conclude on a note of sincere gratitude to everyone who has contributed in one way or the other to the successful take off of this project. Thank you for buying into this vision and for giving it your all. I want to particularly thank members of the Planning Committee led by the Secretary to the State Government, Professor Kenneth Kalu, FCA, for their efforts. Gratitude is also due to the body of programme facilitators and resource persons led by Mr Johnson Abally for their generosity and love for our children. I would also like to thank the School Management Board, and staff of Government College Umuahia for partnering with us to deliver this project in a conducive environment. To every other stakeholder whose contributions have given this exercise its lustre and appeal, I say thank you. 

11. Thank you for listening and may God bless Abia State. 

Dr Alex C. Otti, OFR, 

August 20, 2025