Igwe Samuel Asadu, Chairman of the South-East Traditional Rulers Council, has described the setting up of the South-East Development Commission as a milestone development in the region. Tinubu signed the bill for the setting up of the Commission into law on the 24th of July.
Speaking on the development on Sunday, Asadu, who also is a traditional ruler in Edem-Ani Ogwugwu Kingdom in Nsukka local government area of Enugu State, said the council members were excited over the creation of the commission. He noted further that the formation of the SEDC, after several efforts had been frustrated, was an affirmation to the post-civil war policy of the three “Rs”-Reconciliation, Rehabilitation, and Reconstruction-targeted at rebuilding the South-East after the civil war of 1967-1970 had wreaked havoc on the region.
He said, “We are elated. It is a game-changer, we love the President for that. It is kind of him.” Speaking further, he noted political alienation of the South-East since the end of the civil war and pointed out the number of years that have elapsed without the creation of the SEDC. He thanked President Tinubu, Senators, and members of the House of Representatives, especially Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, for the support in ensuring passage of the bill.
On his part, Asadu stressed that the commission would be a critical platform for the profitable engagement of the South-East youths. He urged that the commission’s leadership be people of integrity, adding that individuals with verifiable means of livelihood and proven character would be favoured in the appointment.
“We have gone through a lot, so I am sure that the government would be very wise enough to pick the right people to run the affairs of the commission,” he added.
The SEDC will receive all the funds that will be credited to the Federation Account for the Reconstruction and The Rehabilitation of Roads and other Infrastructure in the South -East. All is set to end the decades-long injustice; deprivation and marginalization. It will engage in the solution of ecological problems and environmental challenges that have bedeviled the region for decades on.