…Umahi maintained that the time is not yet ripe for the South-East to produce Nigeria’s president
ENUGU, NIGERIA- The iNews Times | Engr. David Umahi, the Minister of Works, has declared that the South-East geopolitical zone will deliver 90 per cent of its votes to President Bola Tinubu in the February 20, 2027 presidential election.
Umahi made the remark on Saturday while inspecting projects at the Alaoji section of the Enugu–Port Harcourt Expressway. Umahi maintained that the time was not yet ripe for the South-East to produce Nigeria’s president and urged the region to adopt a strategic political approach.
The minister praised the president for executing major infrastructure projects in the South-East, warning that failing to strongly back Tinubu would not serve the region’s interests.
According to him, longstanding complaints of marginalisation in the zone have been addressed under the current administration.
“All the marginalisation we complain about has been addressed by the president. Unless we are not being truthful to ourselves, there is no more marginalisation in the South East,” he said.
Umahi described the appointment of a South-Easterner as Minister of Works as unprecedented, noting that the region had never previously held the position. He pointed to the ongoing reconstruction works from Port Harcourt to Enugu as evidence of the president’s commitment.
He added that during his tenure as Deputy Governor and later Governor for eight years, no federal road projects were awarded to his state, unlike the present administration which, he said, has initiated projects worth trillions of naira across the zone.
He further highlighted key federal appointments and legacy projects sited in the South-East, calling on the people of the region to support Tinubu and avoid making decisions based on sentiment. He also appealed to former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, to acknowledge that it was not yet the South-East’s turn to produce the president.
Umahi assured the contractor handling the Enugu–Port Harcourt Expressway project of timely release of funds to ensure completion ahead of the president’s planned project tour of the South-East and South-South in May.
He commended Arab Contractors for their dedication, noting that the Federal Government inherited 2,068 ongoing projects valued at N19 trillion when Tinubu assumed office, prior to fuel subsidy removal and the depreciation of the naira.
Even after reprioritisation and rescoping, he said ongoing projects still stand at N16.9 trillion, excluding NNPC-related, legacy and private sector projects.
The minister explained that Arab Contractors had been migrated to Sukuk funding to ease financial constraints. Of the N8.3 billion allocated under Sukuk, he said the firm has N2 billion to claim, while 30 per cent of the 2025 budget allocation would be paid as directed by the president, with the remaining 70 per cent moved to 2026 beginning in April.
He disclosed that with N9 billion earmarked in the 2025 budget and outstanding payments, the contractor would receive about N4.7 billion immediately to facilitate completion of the project.
Providing technical details, Umahi said major works on the second carriageway toward Port Harcourt have been completed, leaving only the combined and wearing course. He revealed that the remaining service lane had been redesigned to include reinforced layers of lumps, sand, stone base, cement-treated stone base, and 20 centimetres of concrete, assuring that the road is structured to last up to 50 years.
The minister welcomed constructive criticism, urging Nigerians to visit project sites to assess progress themselves. He added that all projects had been submitted to the ICPC for evaluation to ensure transparency.
Umahi also inspected the Port Harcourt axis of the expressway being handled by an indigenous contractor.
Among those present during the inspection were the Senior Special Assistant to the President on the South-East, Barr. Chioma Nwaeze; the Project Manager for Arab Contractors, Mr. Mah Moud; and aides of the minister.
