By Obinna Uballa
Minister of Works, Engr. David Umahi, has told Nigerians from the South East to exercise patience in their quest for the presidency, insisting that it is “not yet the region’s turn” to produce the country’s next leader.
Speaking in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Abuja, Umahi said President Bola Tinubu must be allowed to complete his constitutionally guaranteed eight years in office before power can rotate again.
“No, it is not our time; it is not the time of the South-East yet,” Umahi said. “We, the 17 southern governors, met in Asaba before 2023 and agreed that the next president should come from the South – irrespective of party. The crown eventually came upon President Bola Tinubu. So it is wrong for the South-East to now say it is their turn.”
The former Ebonyi State governor argued that Tinubu’s presidency represents the entire South and therefore deserves full support until 2031.
“He has to finish the eight years. The eight years he took is for all of us, both the South and the North. When he has finished, the South East can then vie, in the sense that we have never tasted the position before,” Umahi stated.
“The North East can also contest since they too have not produced a president. When equity and fairness are established, rotation will become a thing of joy.”
While admitting that the South East has faced marginalisation in the past, Umahi said Tinubu’s administration has shown fairness and inclusion through landmark infrastructural projects and appointments.
“President Bola Tinubu does not want to know where you come from. He is treating everybody very nicely,” he said. “The South-East may say they did not get many appointments, but the Ministry of Works is equivalent to five grade-A ministries.”
Umahi listed several multi-billion-naira road projects currently ongoing in the region, including: Enugu–Onitsha dual carriageway (N350bn), Afigbo–Uturu–Okigwe road (N193bn under Dangote tax credit), Enugu–Abakaliki dualisation (N183bn), Trans-Sahara road linking Ebonyi to Benue boundary (N456bn), Port Harcourt–Aba (86km) and Aba–Umuahia (56km x2) highways Umuahia–Lokpanta (6km) and Lokpanta–Enugu (61km x2)
He also cited several bridge and flyover projects, including the reconstruction of failed Enugu bridges, the Abakpa and Obinagu flyovers, and new cross-river bridges linking Ebonyi and Cross River states.
“We have no reason not to be grateful to the president,” Umahi said. “If you look at what he is doing in Onitsha, Owerri, Afikpo, and Enugu, you’ll know this administration means well for our region.”
The minister acknowledged that funding delays have created “little challenges” for some projects but assured that contractors have been persuaded to return to site, as payments would soon resume.
Reflecting on the region’s poor showing in the 2023 elections, where the APC secured only 5.85% of votes, Umahi attributed it to historical grievances, saying that many in the South-East felt alienated by previous administrations.
Still, he urged Ndigbo to recognise the “new reality” and support President Tinubu’s efforts to rebuild the country.
“Yes, acknowledge the past, but let us also emphasise the realities of what is happening now,” he said. “We should be clapping with our hands and legs for President Bola Tinubu.”
He added that his appointment as Minister of Works was “one appointment too many,” stressing that leadership should be measured not by titles but by tangible contributions to national development.
“It is not just about being appointed; it is about what you use that office to achieve for the entire country,” Umahi said.
