ECHOES of regional economic integration sounded on Sunday, May 12 when 10 of the 11 governors of the South-South and Southeast geopolitical zones met in the Delta State capital, Asaba.
Going by the speeches and resolution after the conclave, it was abundantly clear that high-level politics also took the centre stage.
In attendance were host governor, Emmanuel Uduaghan, Peter Obi (Anambra), Sullivan Chime (Enugu), Liyel Imoke (Cross River), Godswill Akpabio (Akwa Ibom), Seriake Dickson (Bayelsa), Martin Elechi (Ebonyi), Rochas Okorocha (Imo) and Theodore Orji (Abia).
The governors agreed on the need to speed up the economic integration of the former Midwest and the Eastern regions, now South-South and Southeast geopolitical zones.
While Edo and Delta states, which are part of the South-South geopolitical zone, were formerly in the Midwest Region, the rest were in the old Eastern Region.
But going by the new political arithmetic, the Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River states are grouped in the South-South, while the rest are in the Southeast.
A statement jointly read by Obi and Imoke after the governors’ exhaustive deliberation commended President Goodluck Jonathan for his focused leadership and bold, result-yielding transformation agenda.
This, they said, deserved the unwavering support of all Nigerians and friends of Nigeria alike, as “the laudable achievements of the administration in strengthening our democracy, stabilising the polity, growing the economy and improving the quality of life of all citizens continue to unfold.”
While pledging to strengthen cooperation across the board, with particular focus on development of infrastructure linking the region, particularly federal roads, they agreed on economic and political integration of the old Eastern and Midwest Regions.
The governor urged the federal government to rehabilitate all rail lines linking the states in the region and construct railway links among all the states.
They also resolved to work together to ensure the development of all the ports in the regions, including the Abia Dry Port, and called on the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) to facilitate the achievement of this objective.
On the ongoing rehabilitation/modernisation of the airports across the country, particularly those in the two regions, the governors urged the federal government to establish cargo airports at Owerri and additional deep-sea ports in the regions, including Ibaka, Escravos and Agge, while also calling for the dredging of the Calabar Port.
The state chief executives resolved to pull resources together to revive agro-allied industries, particularly in palm and rubber plantations, to exploit the comparative advantage in that sector in both regions.
They appealed to the federal government to facilitate the full implementation of the Free Trade Zones status amongst the states of the regions.
At the end of an all-night meeting, the PDP Caucus, in acknowledgement of, and response to the deafening calls by different segments of the country for a review of Nigeria’s over 20-year-old revenue allocation formula, which has long ceased to reflect the changing realities, called for its urgent, reasonable and pragmatic review to achieve vertical and horizontal equity amongst the tiers of government and better enable the federating units to drive development across the country, as was the case up to the 1963 Republican Constitution.
As for the disproportionate assignment of constitutional responsibilities and fiscal powers, they top recommended drastic and further devolution of functions and fiscal powers from the centre to the federating units to make states more effective engines of growth and development, and decentralise, localise and ease governance across the country without undermining the power of federal government.
The conclave expressed deep concern over underdevelopment at the grassroots across the country.
They called on the executive at the federal and state levels to work with both the national and state assemblies to strengthen the system of Local Council prescribed in the 1999 Constitution (as amended) without compromising their proper placement in a federation as essentially being matters for the federating units (states) to handle, including their boundaries, numbers, funding, etc.
According to them: “Since Nigeria’s constitution provides a solid framework for the sustenance of unity and diversity in an ethnically and religiously plural society, Caucus holds the view that whilst observable lapses in the 1999 Constitution (as amended) need to be addressed, constitutional amendment should not become so routine an exercise as to impair the stability required for our political and socio-economic development.”
They commended Nigerians and friends of Nigeria for their resolute support for the Jonathan’s administration, the first to be headed by a Nigerian from the geopolitical zone that produces oil, the mainstay of the country’s economy.
“The administration, which is still in its first term, should not be detracted by the antics of a few, but forge ahead with the task of transforming Nigeria and providing good governance, growth and development to all and sundry, knowing that Nigerians, who gave him an overwhelming mandate, are solidly supporting him and his programmes,” they said.
At the meeting were the Chairman of PDP’s Board of Trustees (BoT), Chief Tony Anenih; Chief Edwin Clark; members of the national and state assemblies, including the Senate leader, Ndoma Egba, and House of Representatives Minority Leader, Leo Ogor; and a cross section of state party chairmen and stakeholders.
Observers believed their presence was indicative that the 2015 elections, which Jonathan seems to be interested in, going by his body language, was at the heart of the meeting.
A source said the need to ensure that Jonathan secures emphatic victory in the two zones, as he did in 2011, might be the real reason the likes of Anenih and Clark were present at the South-South Caucus meeting of the party, which held after the governors’ meeting.
The source recalled that a similar meeting of the governors convened by Uduaghan held in Asaba on Sunday, January 23, 2011 before the April 2011 elections drummed support for Jonathan in that elections.
“With the main opposition parties merging into the All Progressives Congress (APC), the calculation is that Jonathan cannot afford to lose in his home base of the South-South, and the Southeast, where he recorded an overwhelming victory in the last election,” the source said.
The source added that secret resolutions on how to ensure the President wins a second term by reaching out to the four other geopolitical zones were reached, adding that contact and mobilisation committees headed by the governors and other leaders were set up to reach out to their colleagues in other zones, even though the communiqué did not touch these issues.
According to the source: “For obvious strategic reasons, the governors decided to cleverly leave out Jonathan’s quest for a second term in the communiqué.
“Anenih and Clark didn’t come to Asaba to discuss economic integration between the South-South and Southeast, but Jonathan’s second term bid.”
The source disclosed that Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole decided to stay away from the meeting, as his party, the ACN, was currently spearheading the merger of the opposition parties and could be accused of anti-party activities if he had showed up.
Rivers State Governor Chibuike Amaechi was represented by his Deputy, Tele Ikuru.
At the end of the parley at Government House, Asaba, Jonathan was commended for his commitment to the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), which they urged all stakeholders, especially members of the National Assembly, to support.
They conceded that internal wrangling within the PDP was an inevitable consequence of democracy and urged all party faithful, especially the party leadership at all levels, to rally round Jonathan as National Leader of the party and work assiduously to put their house in order, saying the stability, progress and development of Nigeria was largely dependent on the continuing stability, cohesion and unity of the party.
They condemned the spate of terrorist activities, its sponsors and collaborators in parts of the country and commiserated with the president, governments, victims and their families and indeed peace-loving Nigerians.
The stakeholders, however, commended Jonathan for the initiative and pursuit of the amnesty policy for Boko Haram and called for the “fundamental views and interests of the victims” to be taken into account along with the rule of law in resolving it and other violence in any part of the country.
The South-South leaders remarked that such action should not be allowed to become an instrument of blackmail, coercion or dictate for political and/or other ends.
It would be recalled that a similar South-South governors meeting held in Asaba late last year called for close economic integration, amidst fanfare, but nothing tangible has come out of it.
Only time will tell if the latest would be different.