Eastern Nigeria Economic Summit At Enugu Nike Lake Resort (Submission)

[SR]

(A Submission To The Eastern Nigeria Economic Summit At Enugu Nike Lake Resort. Sept 1- 2, 2011)

Igbo have an unexplainable proclivity for meetings; Ohaneze Ndigbo meetings, Ime Obi meetings, World Ibo Congress meetings, Aka Ikenga meetings, Ibos in Abuja Meetings, Ibos in Lagos meetings, Town meetings, villages meetings, kindred meetings, August Meetings etc .
With all these series of endless meetings one would have expected that Igboland will be brimming and gleaming with the most modern infrastructure, manufacturing companies, federal establishments, state PPP projects, best ICT facilities, best independent power plants, most modern Railway network and possibly have the lowest regional unemployment rate to mention a few.

Unfortunate the reverse is the case, Igboland has the worst road network in the country- What if we are a country, should we have depended on foreigners  to fashion out a workable way of making our road network  Motorable  ? Will we beg for 50 years to have someone build the second Niger Bridge?

All forms of manufacturing have virtually come to a halt in the region, a region that once led the Nation in manufacturing, REMEMBER IGBO MADE before anyone ever heard of made in Korea, China or India. - What if we are a country is there not a single product we have comparative advantage in producing? Malaysian are in Enugu state to find a way to help the state maximize the abundant palm produce, this was Malaysia that took the first palm fruits for planting from Eastern Nigeria. Nkalagu cement was synonymous with Portland cement in Nigeria in the good old days, today there is not a single mention of it when cements is the subject matter? Who is sabotaging industrialization and manufacturing in Igboland?

There is not a single federal establishment in the whole of South Eastern region nor is there a plan for a new one, yet Shell oil exploration in Nigeria started at Ohaji Egbema, Imo state long before they   relocated to Oloibiri in the present Bayelsa state. South Eastern Nigeria for more than 70 years have not been considered economically viable or feasible to host a federal government   oil related facility /refinery – What if we are a country, would it have been more sensible to refine our Egbema oil in Niger republic or Chad or even Libya? Young Ibos need answers please!!!

Imo state before IBB started his SAP program had a successful Independent Power project at Amaraku, the state was going for self sufficiency in power supply before the regime was interrupted Thirty years later there is not a single functional Independent power plant in the whole of South East. Coal is abundant in Enugu more than any other place in the country, gas is being flared at Egbema for more than 70 years destroying our ecosystem – If we were a country can we not be able to use these resources to generate electricity and power our life and processes?

Development of modern railway in Nigeria is more a political propaganda than a realistic objective at the national level, at best it is a conduit for enriching China and helping them modernize their  , however I do not see any  obstacle in the governors in the South East coming together and setting up a regional modern rail project  and seek for  core investors  that abound in a globalized and private sector let economy like ours-( It is a good thing that Governor Chime is testing the waters  with his monorail project, all governors can follow suit immediately and then link up to a regional network ) If we are a country , with compact space and sizable 75 million population , will a modern railway network not be viable and useful in alleviating  the suffering of Igbos ? How about the thousands of Jobs that will be created right from the construction phase. How about the secondary businesses that will come on stream?

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As The Ibos Meet- What If We Are A Country?
Posted: August 31, 2011 - 12:45
By Engr. Alex Anosike

(A Submission To The Eastern Nigeria Economic Summit At Enugu Nike Lake Resort. Sept 1- 2, 2011)

Igbo have an unexplainable proclivity for meetings; Ohaneze Ndigbo meetings, Ime Obi meetings, World Ibo Congress meetings, Aka Ikenga meetings, Ibos in Abuja Meetings, Ibos in Lagos meetings, Town meetings, villages meetings, kindred meetings, August Meetings etc .
With all these series of endless meetings one would have expected that Igboland will be brimming and gleaming with the most modern infrastructure, manufacturing companies, federal establishments, state PPP projects, best ICT facilities, best independent power plants, most modern Railway network and possibly have the lowest regional unemployment rate to mention a few.

Unfortunate the reverse is the case, Igboland has the worst road network in the country- What if we are a country, should we have depended on foreigners  to fashion out a workable way of making our road network  Motorable  ? Will we beg for 50 years to have someone build the second Niger Bridge?

All forms of manufacturing have virtually come to a halt in the region, a region that once led the Nation in manufacturing, REMEMBER IGBO MADE before anyone ever heard of made in Korea, China or India. - What if we are a country is there not a single product we have comparative advantage in producing? Malaysian are in Enugu state to find a way to help the state maximize the abundant palm produce, this was Malaysia that took the first palm fruits for planting from Eastern Nigeria. Nkalagu cement was synonymous with Portland cement in Nigeria in the good old days, today there is not a single mention of it when cements is the subject matter? Who is sabotaging industrialization and manufacturing in Igboland?

There is not a single federal establishment in the whole of South Eastern region nor is there a plan for a new one, yet Shell oil exploration in Nigeria started at Ohaji Egbema, Imo state long before they   relocated to Oloibiri in the present Bayelsa state. South Eastern Nigeria for more than 70 years have not been considered economically viable or feasible to host a federal government   oil related facility /refinery – What if we are a country, would it have been more sensible to refine our Egbema oil in Niger republic or Chad or even Libya? Young Ibos need answers please!!!

Imo state before IBB started his SAP program had a successful Independent Power project at Amaraku, the state was going for self sufficiency in power supply before the regime was interrupted Thirty years later there is not a single functional Independent power plant in the whole of South East. Coal is abundant in Enugu more than any other place in the country, gas is being flared at Egbema for more than 70 years destroying our ecosystem – If we were a country can we not be able to use these resources to generate electricity and power our life and processes?

Development of modern railway in Nigeria is more a political propaganda than a realistic objective at the national level, at best it is a conduit for enriching China and helping them modernize their  , however I do not see any  obstacle in the governors in the South East coming together and setting up a regional modern rail project  and seek for  core investors  that abound in a globalized and private sector let economy like ours-( It is a good thing that Governor Chime is testing the waters  with his monorail project, all governors can follow suit immediately and then link up to a regional network ) If we are a country , with compact space and sizable 75 million population , will a modern railway network not be viable and useful in alleviating  the suffering of Igbos ? How about the thousands of Jobs that will be created right from the construction phase. How about the secondary businesses that will come on stream?

In 1999 immediately Mohamed Arziki was made the communication minister by the Obasanjo regime he said all the analogue equipment would be cannibalized and used to configure the network in the South East while the rest of the country move on to digital service, it was only the then Governor of Imo State Chief Achike Udenwa who stood up to him and challenged him to make a call from government house Owerri to his native home in North West and have a taste of it. I do not need to bias any one by saying that even with the digital mobile telephony, calling anyone in the South East is still more problematic in the already poor service provided nationwide – If we are a country will it be impossible to get a telephone provider that will wire every home and office in Igboland with optic fiber broadband network and reap his profit providing efficient and world class service to vibrant 75 million market?

With 75 million people, South East will still be the second biggest country in Africa behind what is left in Nigeria, ahead of Egypt 56 million and South Africa 40 million, Ghana 25 million, if we are a country. Investors worldwide know this, they are waiting for the governments of the South East to come to terms with this reality, a case in point is the Shoprite activity in Enugu state, with a well articulated approach, the Walmarts, Carre four and the rest of global retail operators will easily invest in the South East and create the badly needed jobs. Most will be even willing to invest in infrastructures like modern railway that will boost their businesses.

For anyone who must have been alarmed by the question and on going analysis, I for one believe in one strong and indivisible Nigeria. This is more a wake up call on governments in the South East, its time for paradigm shift, we must move away from shouts of marginalization to making good and prudent use of what we have to get what we want. Many people of Igbo extraction are in good position at the federal government level in the current dispensation, how do we key into their ministries/agencies programs to ensure that Igbos are getting their due share of democratic dividends. Why can`t we also come up with well thought out and implementable   integrated regional economic agenda like the Oduas and the Arewas?

All great democracies in the world are a patchwork of regional economic power blocks. Here in Japan there are the Kanto, Kansai, Chubu, Tokai, Kyushu, Tohoku, Hokaido and Okinawa regions, all aggressively pursuing economic policies and development initiatives that make their regions less dependent on federal/national monthly handouts.

I wish all delegates to the summit journeying mercies and pray that perhaps this particular MEETING will make a noticeable difference in the economic fortunes of the South East.

IGBO KWENU!!!!

Engr Alex Anosike
(President Richgatecorp, Japan)
And CONVENER
NATIONAL TRANSFORMATION  GROUP ( NTG)