Political leaders of the South-East, Saturday, listed the demands of the geo-political zone from the Federal Government to include the Second Niger Bridge, due attention to roads and solution to ecological problems.
The leaders spoke while welcoming President Goodluck Jonathan, who was visiting the South-East, to Enugu, the capital of Enugu State.
The Igbo leaders spoke through Governor Peter Obi of Anambra State on a day Jonathan fulfilled his 2011 electioneering campaign promise to the Igbo by completing Akanu Ibiam International Airport Enugu.
Indeed, Obi referred to the fulfillment of the electioneering promise when he told Jonathan that the South-East merits its own international airport to enable the people, being the most widely travelled in Nigeria, traverse the world to market their entrepreneurial attributes.
From Left; Deputy Speaker, House of Reps, Emeka Ihedioha; Minister of Aviation, Princess Stella Oduah; Former Vice-President Alex Ekwueme; Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu Welcoming President Goodluck Jonathan to the foundation laying of the New International Terminal and the Inauguration of the remodelled Terminal of Akanu Ibiam International Airport Enugu on Saturday (18/5/13).00
On the Second Niger Bridge, the Igbo leaders said: “The bridge will serve as an important economic corridor that is at the heart of a globally recognized emerging industrial hub, not just for this nation, but for the entire Africa. The salient national benefits of a second bridge across River Niger cannot be overemphasized.In our last meeting, you promised to flag off this project within the First Quarter of 2013. We humbly plead that you return to our zone in the not-too-distant future to fulfil this promise for which your commitment is not in doubt.”
On roads, they said: “The presence of a good road network. The present state of most federal roads in our zone remains deplorable and our people very often use these roads as a comparative measure of the federal government’s commitment to our zone.
“In this context, sir, we wish to once more as a people appeal for your due attention to the Enugu-Port-Harcourt, Enugu-Onitsha, and the Owerri-Elele federal roads, which we have repeatedly brought to your attention. These roads form a critical tripod in our national transportation mosaic. Similarly, a critical bridge on the hump of the federal road linking Abakaliki to Ogoja is in dire need of replacement.”
“The erosional incursions in our five states”, the Igbo leaders said, “seem to have no boundaries. Some work has been done, but much more remains to be done.”
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