The one-day trip to the Southeast by President Bola Tinubu, which was his first in 2025, was not your typical trip. From the warm reception to the kind remarks that followed, it was full of symbolism. The significance of this visit, with all its amazing features, was not overlooked. Although many have expressed gratitude and praised the visit, it also raises certain concerns.
President Tinubu’s visit to Enugu, the former Southeast capital, on January 4, 2025, where he made significant announcements and officially opened Governor Peter Ndubuisi Mbah’s historic projects, marked a new chapter in his relationship with the Southeast geopolitical zone.
Is the President’s trip across the Niger a turning point in the relationship between him and the South East’s citizens, and a subliminal hint of what lies ahead?
The Southeast has not been enthused about President Tinubu, as it was about President Muhammadu Buhari. Naturally, the outcomes of the elections in 2015, 2019, and 2023 demonstrate the zone’s political disinterest in the two leaders.
In particular, the Southeast was unimpressed with Tinubu’s presidential ambition in light of the events leading up to and the outcomes of the 2023 presidential election. Peter Obi, a homeboy who had defected from the opposition Peoples Democratic Party and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar to become the Labour Party’s presidential candidate, had all the political eggs in the Southeast’s basket in the lead-up to the election.
The Southeast was partly captivated by the Obidients’ raucous behavior, as Peter Obi’s fans had called themselves. Any Igbo who chose a different song during the 2023 election was viewed as an outsider.
Even Peter Obi himself did not permit the proper level of amity to prevail. He used his Igbo ethnicity as the basis for his campaign and openly emphasized his Christian beliefs in order to get votes. When it came time for the election, the Igbo cast their votes in large numbers for him, indicating a close relationship between Nigerian elections, religion, and geography.
According to a geopolitical analysis of the results of the 2023 presidential election, Obi and his LP received 1,952, 998 votes from the Southeast’s five states, which amounts to an astounding 89.62% of the region’s total votes. President Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress received a scant 127,370 votes, or 5.85% of the local vote, while former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, received 90,698 votes, or a pitiful 4.16%.
Even though Obi achieved remarkable outcomes outside of the Southeast, such as winning the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja, Lagos, Nasarawa, Edo, Delta, Plateau, and Cross River, his 2023 presidential campaign was primarily a Southeast contest.
He stayed in their cocoons, or the parallel reality they created, with his ethnic supporters after the election. Acting as though Obi had won the poll, they denied winning. The word Asiwaju Tinubu, much alone President Tinubu, seemed to be something the Obidients would prefer not to hear. Even when Obi’s appeal against President Tinubu’s court victory was denied, this pattern persisted. The president’s actions were criticized and denounced.
When President Tinubu took office, he made concessions to the region through important appointments like the appointment of Enugu native Rear Admiral Emmanuel Ikechukwu Ogalla as Chief of Naval Staff, Senate David Umahi from Ebonyi State as Minister of Works, Hon. Uche Nnaji as Minister of Innovation, Science, and Technology, and Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anite, the first Minister of Trade and Investment who is now the Minister of State for Finance.
Notably, the late Ikemba Nnewi’s wife, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, and Chief Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu were among those appointed by the president when he reorganized his cabinet in October of last year. The position of Minister of State for Foreign Affairs was given to her. Another important step taken by President Tinubu to encourage and quicken the development of the region was the creation of the Southeast Development Commission.
One prominent journalist, a friend from the Southeast and a fervent Obidient who had never concealed his distaste for Tinubus, claimed that those two appointments were enough to pardon President Tinubu for his alleged transgressions against the Igbo.
President Tinubu accepted Governor Mbah’s offer to launch some of his projects in the upcoming year in light of this.
During an interactive session with Southeast leaders and during the inauguration of Governor Mbah’s projects, President Tinubu made important remarks that made the Igbo people happy.
The President emphasized the significance of collaboration and cooperation between the Federal Government and the sub-nationals in promoting development during the Command and Control Center’s inauguration.
“This Command and Control Center is an impressive example of what we can do as a team. The fact that more money is going to local and subnational governments for development rather than waste gives me comfort.
Thanks to dedicated leaders like Peter Mbah, Enugu is progressing toward the 21st century, reaching new heights, and creating our future now.
“Seeing those kids I just met at the Smart Green School will always be in my memory. I’ve seen cars and devices that use 21st-century technology. It is true that you are working for the present, the future, and the future.
The President officially opened 150 police cars equipped with security cameras, the International Conference Center, the Command and Control Center, New Haven/Bisalla Road, and the GTC Smart Green School. Additionally, he virtually launched several noteworthy initiatives inside the Government House of Enugu State.
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President Tinubu later pledged during a meeting with leaders of the Southeast that his government would finish the Eastern Rail line that would connect Port Harcourt and Maiduguri and encourage the development of the Anambra Basin, a major energy reserve that is thought to contain up to 30 billion cubic feet of gas and one billion barrels of oil. He made the pledge in response to pleas made during the interactive session by Chris Ugoh, an Enugu State native, and Professor Chinedu Nebo, the former minister of power.
After praising the Tinubu administration for finishing the Eastern rail line’s Port Harcourt to Aba segment, Nebo had urged the President to give the remaining rail link segments top priority in order to promote non-oil product exports and spur regional development.
The session was attended by dignitaries from the zone, including former Senate President Ken Nnamani, governors, traditional leaders, captains of industry, and current and former presiding officers of the National Assembly.
With his visit to Enugu and the significance he placed on PDP Governor Mbah’s invitation, President Tinubude displayed political maturity and his resolve to support developmental progress made by any governor or stakeholder, regardless of where in the nation they are. His nonpartisan disposition and readiness to prioritize the nation were boldly demonstrated by the visit. Governor Mbah received a lot of praise from him for exhibiting “an irrevocable commitment to human development.”
Similarly, when President Tinubu saw Abia State Governor Alex Otti at the ceremony in Enugu, he said: “I don’t care which party you come from; you are my friend.” Abia State’s Alex Otti is likewise doing quite well. Language and birthplace disparities are not the issue.
The mother tongue is not under any of our authority. You can find yourself in Lagos, Onitsha, or Enugu, and God made us all. We all belong to the same large family, Nigeria, yet we reside in separate rooms in the same home. This house must be constructed in order to meet our demands both now and in the future.
Prior to the launch of his initiatives, Governor Mbah had characterized President Tinubu as a true federalist who was dedicated to the advancement of Nigeria.
“Your Excellency, your credentials as a true federalist are very impressive, and you will receive a lot of praise for your accomplishments.
By signing the Electricity Act (Amendment) Bill, you made it easier to generate, transmit, and distribute electricity. That one action will always stand as a lasting legacy,” he added, noting that Enugu State was the first sub-national to have regulatory control over the local energy market from the NERC. That shows the speed at which we are working toward our objectives.
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In regards to the Southeast Development panel, the governor stated that the panel would complement the numerous development advancements taking place throughout the state by addressing ecological and infrastructure issues in the area.
The visit’s main subjects might have been development and governance. Still, experts believe that, considering everything that happened during the visit, President Tinubu’s relationship with the Southeast geopolitical zone may have unintentionally entered a new chapter. According to them, this reconciliation could be a precursor to further significant developments for President Tinubu from the region, especially as the 2027 election approaches.
*The President’s Senior Special Assistant on Media Matters is Rahman.
