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Claim: A Facebook post claimed that Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, recently signed a Senior Citizens Bill into law.
Verdict: Misleading. Although the Abia State governor signed a citizens’ bill into law in 2025, this occurred before the Facebook user claimed.
Full Text
Since building and commissioning the first autonomous power plant in Nigeria alongside other projects in Abia State, Governor Alex Otti has attracted social media users’ applause for his leadership’s dedication to innovation and development in the State.
Following this, a Facebook user, “Shedrack Prince,” on Monday, Feb. 9, 2026, shared a post claiming that Governor Otti just signed a Senior Citizens Bill into law. The post further asserted that the bill provides that any citizen aged 60 years and above will receive a free monthly salary, medical bills, and other benefits till death.
The post caption reads, “Breaking News, First in history. Abia State Governor Alex Otti just signed a Senior Citizens Bill into law. This Bill entitles any citizen of Abia State who is 60 years old and above, to get a free monthly salary, free medical bills, and other benefits till death.”
The Facebook user commended this development, describing it as beautiful. The user also said this proves that there is money in the country.
The post engagement generated over 4,200 likes, 525 comments, and 133 reposts as of Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026.
Believing the post’s recency, users in the comment section praised the Abia State Governor.
“When the righteous rule, the people rejoice. Alex Otti has proven once again that good governance is not rocket science, but having men of goodwill in charge of the affairs of governance,” Tremendous George boldly stated.
Eegbara Donald suggested, “His Excellency, when are you contesting for president? I think this man is more genuine than Peter Obi, because there is no noise, but just results.
“When the Bible says, when the righteous are in power, the people rejoice. That’s a perfect example,” Emilia Neill wrote.
Given the claim’s public interest and the involved personality, DUBAWA decided to investigate it.
Verification
A Google search on whether the Abia State governor recently signed a Senior Citizens Bill into law led us to publications reporting its approval in 2025.
On May 26, 2025, Punch reported that the Abia State Governor signed a senior citizens bill, along with 17 other executive bills, into law. Some of the approved bills include the establishment of the Office of the Ombudsman, the relocation of the Office of Homeland Security, and the relocation of the Umuahia Capital Development Authority, among others.
The report further added that the Abia State Government, under the Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Programme, also paid a counterpart fund of N3.5bn to support key projects, including six lots of backlog road maintenance, five lots of upgraded roads across 10 LGAs in the state, and three agro-logistics hubs.
Another Vanguard publication in 2025 noted that the legislation aligns with the community and neighbourhood development survey and proposals, as captured in the Governor’s manifesto and the recommendations of the 2023 transition committee report.
Leadership Newspaper and Whistle Newspaper also reported similar bill approval in 2025.
In a more recent publication by The Nation on Jan. 20, 2026, the Abia State governor clarified a viral misconception regarding the Senior Citizens Law. Following the approval of this law, a Senior Citizen Centre was established in the State. The governor explained that the centre was a support system primarily designed to provide care, dignity, and inclusion for senior citizens in the State, not a distribution centre for funds.
Contrary to the claimant’s assertion, our findings show that the Senior Citizen Bill signed by the Abia State governor does not approve the payment of a monthly salary to elderly citizens in the State.
Conclusion
The claim that the Abia State governor has signed a senior citizens bill into law is true, but it is not recent. The bill was approved in May 2025, not a recent development as portrayed.
