The Minister of Works, Senator Dave Umahi, has debunked recent claims alleging that the South East region has been sidelined in ongoing federal road infrastructure projects.
The minister’s rebuttal was issued through a statement by Mohammed Ahmed, Director of Press and Public Relations in the Ministry of Works, and made available to journalists on Monday.
The statement was in response to an article authored by Linus Anagboso, popularly known as D-Big Pen, titled “The Politics of Asphalt: Why is the South East Missing from the Map?” Umahi described the piece as “false, mischievous, and deliberately misleading,” and demanded a public retraction.
According to Umahi, President Bola Tinubu’s administration has been equitable in its approach to infrastructure development across all six geopolitical zones, including the South East. He highlighted that the President had revived 90 percent of previously abandoned road projects, some dating back to 2013, while also initiating new ones without regional bias.
The minister pointed to the approval of four “Legacy Projects” that cut across all geopolitical zones. One of these projects spans from Cross River through Ebonyi, Benue, Kogi, and Nasarawa to Abuja—covering approximately 231.64 kilometers in the South East—at a contract value of N445.8 billion. This corridor, he noted, was recently reaffirmed at the same contract sum during the last Federal Executive Council meeting.
Umahi also listed major projects currently underway in the South East region, including:
- Second Niger Bridge access roads:
- Section 2A in Delta State – N146 billion
- Section 2B in Anambra State – N176 billion
- Enugu-Onitsha Road (208 km):
- N202 billion funded through MTN Tax Credit Scheme
- Remaining sections awarded at N150 billion
- Enugu–Port Harcourt Road (in four sections)
- Enugu-Abakaliki Road
- Afikpo-Abia-Imo corridor
- Onitsha-Owerri-Aba Road
- Aba-Ikot Ekpene Road
- Umuahia-Ikot Ekpene Road
He commended governors from the South East for supporting the Federal Government’s infrastructure agenda and encouraged the people of the region to rally behind the Tinubu administration.
Umahi also reiterated his belief that the South East would eventually produce Nigeria’s president, although, in his words, “not in 2027.”
He concluded by assuring the public of his ministry’s commitment to addressing misinformation and ensuring that development narratives are based on facts.