- On July 24, 2024, President Bola Tinubu signed a bill to establish South East Development Commission, SEDC
- Benjamin Kalu, Ohaneze Ndigbo, others hail President Tinubu for signing the bill
- Analysts say President Tinubu should also go a step further by creation of additional state in the zone and also release of detained IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu
On July 24, President Bola Tinubu signed into law bills creating two new regional development commissions.
The bills are the North West Development Commission (NWDC) and its counterpart South East Development Commission (SEDC).
WITHIN NIGERIA findings showed that while NWDC was sponsored by Deputy Senate President Jibrin Barau, that of SEDC was spear-headed by Deputy Speaker Ben Kalu.
The two bills were passed by both chambers in June and transmitted to the president for assent.
President Tinubu signed the bills on that Tuesday, according to Mr Kalu, who announced this in a post on social media.
The NWDC is mandated to develop the seven North-west states of Kano, Sokoto, Zamfara, Kebbi, Katsina, and Kaduna.
The SEDC is responsible for the five South-east states of Ebonyi, Imo, Abia, Enugu, and Anambra.
It was also revealed that the signing of these two bills into law comes amid calls for reducing government agencies to cut down the cost of governance in the country.
President Tinubu had earlier announced a plan to implement the Oransaye Report on the review of ministries, departments, and agencies.
The signing of the SEDC bill is coming 54 years after the civil war that ravaged the zone during which over one million people died.
In any case, for over half of a century after the war, there has been calls by well meaning Nigerians across the six geopolitical zones to establish a commission that will implement the 3Rs of Rehabilitation, Reconstruction and Reintegration announced by General Yakubu Gowon to heal the wounds of the war.
Nevertheless, with the establishment of the Commission, this will go a long way in giving the zone a sense of belonging and development.
The duties of the SEDC
The commission, according to the bill, will perform functions, including “conceive, plan and implement, in accordance with the set rules and regulations, projects and programmes for the sustainable development of the South East States in the field of transportation including roads, health, education, employment, agriculture, industrialization, housing and urban development, water supply, electricity and telecommunications; cause the South-East States to be surveyed in order to ascertain measures which are necessary to promote its physical and socio-economic development.
“Implement all the measures approved for the development of the South East States by the Federal Government and the member States of the Commission; identify factors inhibiting the development of the South East States and assist the member States in the formulation and implementation of policies to ensure sound and efficient management of the resources of the South East States; assess and report on any project being funded or carried out in the South-East States by mineral extracting and mining companies, oil and gas producing companies, and any other company including non-governmental organisations and ensure that funds released for such projects are properly utilised.
“It is also to “tackle ecological and environmental problems that arise from the extraction and mining of solid mineral, exploration of oil mineral in the South-East States and advise the Federal Government and the member States on the prevention and control of oil spillages, gas flaring and environmental pollution; liaise with the various solid mineral extraction and mining companies and oil and gas prospecting and producing companies on all matters of pollution prevention and control; and execute such other works and perform such other functions which in the opinion of the Commission are required for the sustainable development of the South-East States and its peoples.”
Speaking after passing the bill, the Senate President said, “It’s a very important bill passed by this 10th Senate, this bill addresses all the fears of our brothers and sisters from the South-East. I want to say congratulations. I pray this commission will bring a lot of development to Sout-East and we will assist you to stop any form of agitation and bring peace to your region. When harmonised, it will address the fears of the south-east”.
Reactions trail the signing of the bill
In his reaction, the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Benjamin Kalu, has said that the establishment of the South East Development Commission (SEDC) will assist in solving the ecological challenges in the Southeast.
The Deputy Speaker gave the assurance while speaking at Uzoakoli in Bende Federal Constituency of Abia State as part of his tour of the 13 electoral wards in his constituency.
According to Kalu, President Tinubu is interested in the development of the region, hence his resolve to assent to the South East Development Commission (SEDC) bill sponsored by him.
He assured the people that the SEDC will tackle the ecological problems bedeviling Uzoakoli Ward.
In his words “I want to thank you all for voting and supporting me. May God bless you all.
“President Bola Tinubu in a show of love for the Igbo signed the South East Development Commission Bill (SEDC) into law. It will be used to rebuild our beloved Southeast. Thank Mr President for this kind act.
“I promise you if there’s anywhere that the federal government needs to repair erosion damages, it’s starting from Uzuakoli ward. Whatever our dear President approves, your community will be there among those communities for repairs and reconstruction.”
However, reacting to the development, the Ohaneze Ndigbo hailed the signing of the bill.
The apex Igbo sociocultural group in a statement issued before the death of its immediate past President-General, Emmanuel Iwunanyanwu reads thus; “The Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide has received with immense relief and joy the news of the signing into Law, the South East Development Commission (SEDC) Bill by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The SEDC will cover the states of Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo.
“This is a quantum leap, a hope renewal and a significant part of a new beginning by President Tinubu.
“Ohanaeze seizes this opportunity to commend the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Benjamin Kalu and the co-sponsors of the all-important Bill. During a courtesy call to the National Assembly by the leadership of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the exceptional quality of Kalu did not go unnoticed. His suave, assertive, sagacious and visionary dispositions were very inspiring and a veritable source of hope.
“More importantly, he commands the respect and confidence of most members of the House of Representatives. It needs a mention that the SEDC which has remained in the pipeline for decades has come on stream through Kalu and his team.
“The South East Development Commission (SEDC) is expected to manage funds allocated from the Federation Account for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of roads, and other infrastructural deficits suffered by the region due to age-long neglect. The SEDC will tackle ecological problems and related environmental challenges that have devastated the Southeast for decades.
“The SEDC will go a long way to assuage the feelings of the Igbo with respect to the 3R sophistry by General Yakubu Gowon in January 1970. Gowon had assured the world that there would be three R: Reconciliation, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction of the Igbo land as a result of war ravages. But fifty four years after the war, the South East has witnessed the direct opposite of the 3Rs, even in exponential proportion.
“For instance, the South East has the least number of local government areas, the least number of states, the least in political appointments, the least members in the House of Representatives, the least in the Senate and of course the worst in infrastructure. The foregoing structures are the federal allocation tributaries that have enlarged the coast of others geopolitical zones, leaving the South East of Nigeria in the cold.
“No one should therefore look elsewhere in the search for the persistent youth restiveness and secessionist agitations in the region.
“Furthermore, the South East governors led by the governor of Imo State, Senator Hope Uzodimma, will leverage the opportunity created by the Commission to anchor programmes that will fully harness and promote the industrial, agricultural, tourism, energy, commercial and investment potentials in the zone. It will also help to create the much desired centrally coordinated security architecture in the zone; and more.
“A few days ago, the Minister of Works, Sen. David Nweze Umahi, at Abikiliki, announced plans by the Federal Government to construct 477 kilometre –six-lane Super Highway, traversing five states to the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. According to the minister, the super highway will, among others, pass through Abakiliki, Enugu, Nsukka, leading to Abuja.
“The President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide Chief Engr. Dr. Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, MFR; is highly elated and sends a warm gratitude to Mr. President over these developments.
“The Ohanaeze Ndigbo has maintained that the cause of backpedalling by Nigeria is the Igbophobia-a pathological fear of the Igbo in a country they have sacrificed so much to uphold.
“As it stands, President Bola Tinubu has shown a major departure from the Buhari regime by signing the SEDC Bill into Law; appointing Sen. Dave Nweze Umahi, a brilliant and prudent engineer as the federal minister for Works, and Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla as the Chief of the Naval Staff.
“This is a quantum leap and a new beginning”, Ohanaeze said in a statement by the National Publicity Secretary, Dr. Chiedozie Alex Ogbonnia.
Beyond the establishment of South East Development Commission
Findings by WITHIN NIGERIA showed that to some great extent, only the President of Nigeria can lead the effort to heal the South-East of the wounds of the Civil War. Anything else will be a mere play to the gallery. President Tinubu should be that leader who ended the Civil War that continued to rage in the hearts of Nigerians long after the shooting ended on January 15, 1970.
Besides signing the SEDC Bill, the president should also facilitate the ongoing efforts to create one more state in the South-East and integrate it as the sixth state of the South-East for geopolitical balancing with the rest of the zones. More Federal constituencies and local government areas should also be created to further the sense of equity needed to end perceived Igbo marginalisation.
Again, the President should take the extended hand for dialogue, release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu from detention and the discontinuance of his prosecution.
These will not only bring closure to the war, they will also greatly douse the separatist agitations in that part of the country.