Deputy Speaker cites South-East Development Commission, appointments and infrastructure, urges region to support President’s 2027 re-election bid.
The Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, has said President Bola Tinubu has demonstrated greater commitment to the interests of the South-East than previous administrations, urging the people of the region to reciprocate by supporting his re-election in 2027.

Kalu declared that the South-East had resolved to support Tinubu and Vice-President Kashim Shettima for another term, insisting that the region had no alternative presidential candidate for the January 16, 2027 election.

He spoke on Saturday in Enugu at the flag-off of the APC Women’s Mobilisation Campaign and South-East Women Empowerment Programme organised by the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu.
The Deputy Speaker, who is also the Director-General of the APC Presidential Campaign Council 11 (South), said Tinubu had consistently demonstrated his affection for the Igbo, both during his tenure as Lagos State governor and since assuming office as President.
He recalled that between 1999 and 2007, Tinubu appointed people of Igbo extraction into his administration, citing Ben Akabueze as an example.

According to him, the President’s relationship with the Igbo was demonstrated by his willingness to accommodate them in governance and protect their business interests.
“This man has not hidden his love for Ndi Igbo. During his time as the governor of Lagos State, no Igbo property was taken. Nobody who was a businessman in Lagos was arrested. Mr Ben Akabueze was an Igbo man that he brought into his cabinet as governor. It has never happened before.
“I hope we will reciprocate his kind gestures to Ndi Igbo. We must do so this time,” he said.
Kalu also recalled the promise of Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Reintegration (3Rs) made to the Igbo after the Nigerian Civil War, lamenting that successive administrations had failed to adequately fulfil the commitment.

He said the establishment of the South-East Development Commission (SEDC) under Tinubu represented a significant intervention towards addressing the region’s longstanding development challenges.
According to him, the commission’s enabling legislation had remained pending through successive National Assemblies and administrations before Tinubu signed it into law.
“I also need to remind you that after the civil war, we waited for almost 60 years for a promise that was made to the people of Igbo land that was not kept. The 3Rs: Reconciliation, Reconstruction and Reintegration. Was the promise kept or not? It wasn’t kept.
“Government after government, they ignored us. Administration after administration, they ignored the Igbo and we were waiting and asking, when will the messiah come to save the Igbo? Then came a man who loves the Igbo from his heart,” he said.

The Deputy Speaker described Tinubu as a leader who had translated his relationship with the region into concrete actions, adding that the President was also investing in roads, bridges, education and access to financial support.
He further commended the First Lady for initiating empowerment programmes aimed at improving the economic opportunities available to women in the South-East.
Kalu urged residents of the region to come out in large numbers on January 16, 2027, to vote for Tinubu and Shettima, claiming that the governors and political stakeholders across the South-East were united behind the President.
“To this end, I am appealing to Ndi Igbo, come January 16, 2027, we don’t have any other candidate. The Igbo are complete. The governors are complete. Abia is here. Enugu is here. Imo is here. Anambra is here. South-East is complete.
“Ndi Igbo have unanimously agreed that we will return President Tinubu and Vice-President Shettima in 2027 to continue their good work,” he said.

He, however, linked the region’s present political support for Tinubu to the expectation that the South-East would eventually have its opportunity to produce the President for a full eight-year tenure.
Kalu argued that having waited for nearly six decades since the Civil War, the Igbo should not be expected to settle for a single four-year presidential term when their turn comes.
“Others have had it for eight years and we have waited for too long, almost 60 years. Is it fair for us to do four years? Those who want Ndi Igbo to do only four years, it will not work.
“Just like others who did eight years, when it is our turn, we will also do eight years because what is good for the goose is also good for the gander.
“But for now, our mandate is to support the man that has been supporting us. This man has not hidden his love for Ndi Igbo,” he added.