Benjamin Kalu Tasks South East Geopolitical Zone Not to Engage in Second Fiddle Politics in 2027

Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, has tasked the South East geopolitical zone not to engage in second fiddle politics in 2027 but to rather drive the re-election of President Bola Tinubu in 2027 and thus position itself to reap more benefits from his administration, positing that the time was over for just token support to Tinubu’s-led federal government.

Kalu, who spoke at the weekend in Umuahia, Abia State capital (his home state), while unveiling what he tagged the Renewed Hope Partners (RHP), described it as a vehicle to highlight the national achievements of President Tinubu’s administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda (RHA).

He said that RHP would embark on voters’ education to make President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda (RHA) a household conversation in every South East community so that voters would understand, trust, and ultimately reward the President with victory in 2027.

“The RHP would create ambassadors whose job would be to advocate and showcase the good works of President Tinubu’s administration in the country, particularly in the South East region, to convince them of the need for continuity.”

To achieve this, he said there would be Renewed Hope Councils in all South East LGAs linked to South East Development Commission (SEDC) outreach teams by turning the policy wins into grassroots programmes, while each of the seven pillars would be aligned with local town-hall campaigns, ensuring that every citizen sees the direct benefits of President Tinubu’s agenda.

Asserting that President Tinubu’s administration has fundamentally improved the nation’s economy by empowering the youth and thus began to close the development gap between various zones, Kalu of the ruling APC at the federal level listed some of the President’s achievements in the South East zone to include his commitment to actualise the Eastern Rail Line from Port-Harcourt to Maiduguri, linking Aba and Onitsha hub to Northern markets that will unlock a ₦50 billion annual trade portfolio.

Kalu cited the gas infrastructure commissioning by the President in Imo State and the expansion of AHL and ANOH Gas Processing Plants, the 23.3 km ANOH–OB3 Custody Transfer Metering Station pipeline, saying that when completed, it would collectively supply approximately 500 million standard cubic feet of gas per day, thereby increasing domestic gas supply by at least 25%.

He further said that the NOGaPS Industrial Parks – NCDMB’s parks in Bayelsa, Cross River, Akwa Ibom, Imo, Abia, and Ondo – would localise the oil and gas equipment manufacturing into regional gains, reaffirming the President’s commitment to the actualisation of the project, including full development of the Anambra Gas Basin for the economic benefit of the entire country and the South East zone in particular.

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He also said that beyond the South East region, President Tinubu’s RHA has recorded achievements in various sectors of the national economy, listing them to include: doubling of federal revenues, which stood at over ₦9 trillion in the first quarter of 2024, while debt servicing has declined by 97% within 13 months.

On foreign investment, he said that Tinubu has attracted $50.8 billion in foreign investment, while the national gross domestic product has grown from 27% in 2023 to 34% in 2024.

According to Kalu, the South East Development Commission (SEDC), which came into existence in 2024, has signed an MOU with UNDP for a South East integrated development plan, which includes investment in agriculture, manufacturing, and technology to stimulate entrepreneurship, job creation, and critical infrastructure development.

To leverage the zone’s comparative strengths and fast-track President Tinubu’s RHA in the zone, the Deputy Speaker called for key gas pipeline infrastructure across the zone to spur the development of the states in the zone, including dredging of the Onitsha River Port linking the Niger Inland Waterway to regional and international trade routes.

Others are gully erosion prevention and remediation efforts in all states of the zone, allocation of more funds for ecological menace, mangroves maintenance along Imo River to protect fisheries and shorelines, urban stormwater management infrastructure in Onitsha and Aba to prevent flooding, and reforestation of Udi Hills to combat erosion, safeguard, and create eco-tourism jobs.

He remarked that Mr. President, having delivered on his eight-point agenda, the South East region should decisively align with his-led federal government and harness these gains for their well-being.

“I therefore urge the South East Region to reciprocate the President’s gesture by giving him the majority votes come 2027.”