SEDC Must Operate From South-East, Not Abuja, Kalu Insists

Reported by Ariajegbe Sylvia Esezobor 

The Chairman of the Senate Committee on the South-East Development Commission, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, has insisted that the commission must operate from the South-East rather than Abuja, declaring that its headquarters and activities should remain within the region it was established to develop, even as he expressed satisfaction with progress recorded on the commission's Enugu headquarters project.

Kalu, who represents Abia North Senatorial District, issued the directive on Monday during an oversight visit to projects being executed by the commission in Enugu State. He said the commission must ensure that its activities and interventions reached communities across the five South-East states rather than operating from the Federal Capital Territory. "The only problem that I said before, and I repeat, is that they cannot operate from Abuja. They must operate from where they are set up. This is where they are located," Kalu said. He disclosed that the committee had inspected two facilities during the visit: the commission's current office and another building provided by the Enugu State Government, which is being completed for its use. He said the development had addressed some of the committee's earlier concerns about the commission's decision to operate from Abuja rather than the South-East. "Our quarrel before was about being in Abuja and not being in Enugu. So that quarrel is over now," he added.

The lawmaker expressed satisfaction with the progress made on the commission's headquarters in Enugu, commending the management for improvements recorded since the committee's previous engagements. "Well, so far, we are making very good progress, unlike when we started. I'm sure you, both me and my colleagues, are seeing very serious progress. I hope that the Commission, especially the management team, sustains this progress," he said. He announced that the committee would return to Enugu in December to assess further progress on the headquarters project and the commission's operations. He urged the management to extend its activities to communities across the five South-Eastern states, noting that the impact of the commission should be felt at the grassroots. "We also want them to go to the grassroots to show the South Eastern people that they are on the ground," he said. Although he acknowledged that the commission was relatively new, having been established less than a year ago, he said its management must remain focused on delivering on its mandate. "It's a new Commission, less than one year. We are making progress. We are impressed with what we have seen so far. So far, so good," he said.

The oversight visit followed months of tension between the Senate committee and the commission's management over the location of its operations and the management of its finances. In June 2026, the committee placed the Managing Director of the SEDC, Mark Okoye, under scrutiny over the commission's failure to account for more than N4 billion expended from its 2025 budget, including an alleged N153 million spent on renting a one-room liaison office in Abuja despite the commission's corporate headquarters being located in Enugu. During that investigative hearing, Kalu said records available to the committee indicated that the commission had received N16.6 billion in December 2025 and that only about N13 billion remained in its account, suggesting that approximately N3.6 billion had been expended and must be fully accounted for. The committee also flagged what it described as N2.5 billion in implied expenditure contained in the commission's financial report. Other committee members, including Senators Enyinnaya Abaribe, Victor Umeh and Austin Akobundu, expressed concerns over the report submitted by the commission and called for greater transparency.

Okoye defended the commission's spending decisions, stating that all expenditures had been made prudently and in line with available resources. He explained that the commission's strategy was to ensure that projects and procurement activities were tied to actual releases rather than budgetary allocations alone. "Our approach has been to ensure that available resources are directed towards priority projects. We want allocations to guide the procurement process so that contracts awarded can be backed by available funding," he said. He added that awarding contracts based solely on budget provisions without corresponding cash releases could create unfunded liabilities and financial challenges. The commission subsequently clarified that its Abuja office serves as an operational base for engagement with the National Assembly, federal ministries and agencies, development finance institutions and other strategic partners, and that the expenditure covered the establishment and running of the office since its inauguration in February 2025. SEDC said the board and management had prioritised relocating to the commission's designated headquarters in Enugu at the earliest possible opportunity, and that it had secured the transfer of an existing building from the Enugu State Government instead of procuring a new facility, which would have cost more. The commission also noted that it had not received any capital allocation from its budget but had continued to advance project development initiatives across the region.

The South-East Development Commission was established by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in July 2024 to address decades of systemic neglect in the South-East and drive the region's infrastructure and economic development. The commission has been tasked with rebuilding post-Civil War infrastructure deficits, rescuing over 2,700 active erosion sites and scaling the regional economy. Its Managing Director, Mark Okoye, has unveiled an ambitious economic roadmap aimed at growing the South-East into a $200 billion economy within the next ten years, and the commission is seeking legislative approval for a N140 billion 2026 budget to fund regional infrastructure, economic empowerment for local businesses and long-term developmental projects. The Senate committee has commended the strategic blueprint but has consistently tied the release of funds to strict performance metrics, warning that the commission must remain a vehicle for progress rather than a source of financial scandal.

The political context of the oversight visit is significant. The 2027 general elections are less than four months away, with the presidential and National Assembly elections scheduled for January 16, and the governorship and state assembly elections for February 6. President Tinubu is seeking a second term on the All Progressives Congress platform, while former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the African Democratic Congress, former Anambra Governor Peter Obi of the Nigeria Democratic Congress and Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde of the Allied Peoples Movement are among the major challengers. The South-East, as a key geopolitical zone, will be one of the battlegrounds in the presidential contest, and the government's delivery of development through the SEDC will be part of its broader political message to voters in the region. Kalu, as the chairman of the Senate committee overseeing the commission, has positioned himself as a guardian of the commission's mandate and a vocal advocate for the South-East's development.

For the people of the South-East, the relocation of the commission's operations to Enugu represents a tangible step towards ensuring that the body established to serve them is physically present in their region. For the commission's management, the Senate committee's directive is a clear instruction to align its operational base with its statutory mandate and to demonstrate its presence at the grassroots. For Kalu, the oversight visit is another opportunity to demonstrate that the National Assembly is exercising its oversight functions and holding agencies accountable. As he put it, the quarrel over the commission's Abuja base is over, and the focus must now shift to delivering tangible results for the people of the South-East.

📩 Stone Reporters News | 🌍 stonereportersnews.com

✉️ info@stonereportersnews.com | 📘 Facebook: Stone Reporters News | 🐦 X (Twitter): @StoneReportNew | 📸 Instagram: @stonereportersnews