Disinvestment in the East and Economic Sabotage

Why is the Nigerian government so blatantly biased against developing the East and Nigeria ultimately? 

It has been reported that the poorly built Akanu Ibiam International will be closed due to issues with the runway damaging the landing gear of aircrafts which is all well, but no repair contracts are in force to repair immediately, nor does anyone know when it will be reopened.

Beforehand, one would be shocked to discover that the airport has been systematically excluded and neglected to the point where only one airline, Air Peace, was landing at that airport before terminating its operations a few days ago, making agitation to keep the airport open a moot point.

Comparatively, the government already had a plan in hand to repair the Nnamdi Azikiwe international Airport and expedited the upgrade of Kaduna Airport, to handle Abuja traffic.

The government also deployed security along the length and breadth of the Kaduna Abuja road during the repair, only to withdraw all that security after Abuja airport was repaired. 

The Kaduna Abuja has expectedly returned to being a dangerous route plagued by armed robbery and kidnapping and they elite have resorted to taking the train, again one of the only few trains routes operational, and again only in the North.

In regards to issues raised about the Enugu Airport, this is not news you would expect to be hearing now in Nigeria, neglecting such a strategic airport, with so much potential.

It also exposes how the government is unprepared to take Nigeria to the next level by not making that airport an international hub, instead letting it lie fallow as an end destination airport.

With the systematic neglect of the airport, which foreign or domestic airline, would plan to invest in directing operations to that airport especially since no guaranteed date to reopen is in the offing.

This in hand with an unprecedented lack of political will to invest in expanding operations at the wharfs in the east, while concentrating all traffic to congested Lagos and linking the Kaduna dry inland port to that same congested Lagos, reveals a government that is north centric and not prepared to diversify the economy, despite lip service.

Besides the catastrophe such a closure without a scheduled reopen date is doing to the economy from lost revenue, it is also increasing the difficulties to Igbos traveling from the diaspora, wasting vital foreign exchange and adding to travel risks. 

it also feeds more evidence to IPOB and easterners about the systemic neglect of the region by the federal government, and feeds the strident calls for separation and disinvestment in Nigeria, magnified by foreign firms greatly influenced by Igbo business to pull out of Nigeria, it’s a vicious cycle. 

The solutions to grow Nigeria’s economy are all abundantly clear to the deaf and dumb, unfortunately Nigeria has been CURSED by tribalistic leaders, particularly from the North, who are so obviously biased and dead set against structurally incorporating the east into Nigeria, to boost the economy.

It also shows in the lack of political will to complete a simple 2nd Niger Bridge that would open commercial activities and growth of new hubs in the east, but who ultimately loses, the Nigerian economy.

Several anti-east generational policies abound and one is at pains not to condemn them as criminal economic sabotage against the Nigerian State and economy.

These trends of generational policies are a shame to every pretender nationalistic President, particularly Buhari, that has continued with these devastating policies that is destroying Nigeria and making it the poverty capital of the world, in part from spiting the eastern region of Nigeria.

When will Nigeria ever get detribalized national leaders to drag Nigeria out of its depressing state.

 By Terhemba Osuji