Minister of Transportation. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi has called on the people of the Southeast and Southsouth to unite and work for the progress of the regions.

He made the call during an interactive session with the Southeast/Southsouth Professionals of Nigeria (SESSPN) in Lagos.

The SESSPN had invited the Minister to address concerns regions about security, power, economic and social integration and representation in government.

Amaechi said: “We fight a lot among ourselves. In South South and South East we fight amongst ourselves. I’m saying this so that we can separate emotions from reality. Today it is not about President Buhari, it is about us. This administration is doing a lot, but because it’s President Buhari, we pretend not to see it.

“We complain about lopsided appointments. Apart from the area of security, have you checked other areas side by side? The President will appoint someone from the South East and people from the same region will fight against the appointment, if you are the President, how will you feel?

“When we took office, the President asked us to complete all projects left by previous administrations before starting new ones. We did that and it was across all regions. We completed Port Harcourt Airport, we are working on Enugu Airport; Enugu Onitsha road, work is going on, no matter how slow. The second Niger bridge in Onitsha – 48 percent and we have assured the country that by 2022 it would be completed. Those who are from Onitsha or from Anambra, have you gone to the site and work is not going on? When we came it was zero. Most of you don’t see it because it’s not beside the Niger bridge, so you don’t see it unless you visit the site.

“Onitsha is a River port, 3.5 metre draft. The only thing that can go there is barge. Port Harcourt and Warri seaport will be the highest. And people still criticise a president that is doing this much for this zone. How do we survive by ethnicity?”

On rail projects and why work has not been done in the Southeast, Amaechi said: “I hate tribalism. I’ve said this before, for me, I’m Nigerian, and what informs my decision of choosing which rail line to construct at any point in time, is the economics of rail; and currently the economics shows that Lagos to Kano has the capacity to move 30 million tonnes of cargo per year. I do the same analysis for Port Harcourt to Maiduguri, 11 million tonnes. We are currently doing the analysis for Lagos to Calabar to know how many tonnes of cargo can be moved there per year. So we started with the Lagos to Kano rail. President Obasanjo approved it, President Jonathan started construction on it by doing Abuja to Kaduna and President Buhari told us to complete all previous projects.

He added: “Now, we are applying for $11b loan to construct Lagos to Calabar rail. There was no design for Port Harcourt-Maiduguri. We knew that the first thing to do was to commence a feasibility study, after that we did the design. Its now they’ll start to do the site drawing.”

in turn encourage usage of all ports in the South South.

“The problem with maritime in Nigeria is insecurity. There are rich Nigerians who do bunkering. Next are those who escort vessels, another is the OMSL group who say they are protecting vessels and so on. We have a disadvantage where those who are making the money will not allow you provide the security. We have bought equipment for use in securing our waters. The moment I announced it, they reported me everywhere. But we must end it”, Amaechi stated.

In his opening remarks, President of SESSPN, Hannibal Uwaifo while welcoming the Minister, said, “We will need to work with our people in government, support them, no matter what political party they belong to, to help and promote our region. It is those of us who are exposed, those of us who are professionals that can put heads together with our people in government to overcome these challenges. We have to up our game in order to get a better tomorrow for our children.

https://thenationonlineng.net/amaechi-calls-for-unity-in-southeast-southsouth/

OOk

Government shld also stop bad governance

Amaechi should go and say this in Rivers

More business from Lagos to Kano than Lagos to South East?

This borrow borrow guy

Charlatan

Baga! Hear him, "Onitsha is a river port, only barges can go there..."

All these Southern politicians are a bunch of selfish, self serving, gutless fools.

Ok

no need for d call
unity can only be called for wen there is disunity
until u can be able to differentiate between an Igbo and Ikwerre, an ikwerre and an Ibibio, and ibibio and an Idoma, and d list continues, apart from language u will never see a difference between someone from SE and someone from SS. even politically they always align.

so calling for unity dat is naturally there is not necessary

we will prefer calling for unity between d lost zone of the south and d north. we love seeing dem together deceiving themselves

Amaechi the lizard of ubima land....

uv always done well in whatever position u find yourself....

Kudos.... to you





Thread seen....

Amaechi, you are not ok. Aru adighi gi

Has it to do with what? 2023?

So is the gas pipeline to Niger republic part of the ongoing projects the president told them to complete first? How about the new rail tracks to buharis ancestral home in Zinder via Marada in the same Niger republic? The two projects alone are worth well over 5 billion dollars! That's for another country while a segment of your own country hasn't experienced that... How does that prove Buhari to be very altruistic and patriotic?

Retard
How many rails has he constructed in the SS and SE?
Hypocrite and slave.

...work is going on, no matter how slow.

Is that the plot to use it as camouflage for 20 years.Don't worry, all of you your days are numbered.

Proeast2:
Baga! Hear him, "Onitsha is a river port, only barges can go there..."

All these Southern politicians are a bunch of selfish, self serving, gutless fools.

There's a old colonial-period pic i once saw of a ship berthing at Onitsha. Wish i could find it!

If ships can pass through a man made canal like Suez canal, why can't they sail up a huge river like the Niger? Nigeria is such a evil, retrogressive country that limits possibilities and avenues for development and progress based on ones religion and ethnicity!

Moferere:
Amaechi should go and say this in Rivers

If he tries it they may separate his head from his body......cos he is the person they are actually look for in south south among the politicians

Amaechi you adviced us to stone you people, that we must do!

Dude has done nothing in the former eastern Nigeria , other than to talk, talk and talk, then fight, fight and fight with his bulging eyes.. Not even in Rivers State. Don't even know how he feels commissioning projects done by his ministry elsewhere, while none is done where he comes from... They call that desease "patriotism". Problem is, I don't see Fashola or say the minister of defense, being as patriotic as Amaechi by embarking on more projects in the east , rather than in their areas of origin as is the case with Amaechi.. Gani Fahwenmi once said that if everybody is doing the wrong thing and you are the only one doing the right thing, you are actually the one doing the wrong thing... This is a clear case of When patriotism becomes stupidity...

Efulefu