By Peter Omopo
September 5, 2025
The Igbo Unification Movement and the ‘Ndi Na Asu Bia’ Socio-Cultural Organisation have called on the Federal Government to prioritise more infrastructure projects in the South-East, stressing that decades of marginalisation have hindered the region’s growth.
The groups made the demand in a communique issued on Friday after a two-day assembly of Igbo leaders and stakeholders in Asaba, Delta State.
Signed by Kingsley Kainebi (President), Ofochi Atagana (Secretary/Legal Adviser), and Cosmas Chikeobi Agada (Chairman, Local Organising Committee), the statement urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to address historical grievances by reopening and modernising the coastal ports of Port Harcourt, Bonny, and Opobo.
“We urge President Bola Tinubu to immediately lift the economic blockade unfairly imposed on the Igbo almost 60 years ago, which closed the main Igbo coastal ports. We appeal to the President to dredge, modernise, and functionally reopen those ports to re-trigger a pole of development in the East, with spillover effects to the Middle Belt and Lake Chad,” the communique read.
The organisations also pressed for stronger Igbo unity, rejecting what they described as attempts to sow division among Igbo-speaking groups across Nigeria.
While acknowledging what they termed “gradual improvements in security nationwide,” the groups stressed that more action was needed to secure communities in the South-East. They further expressed support for the creation of Anioma State, arguing that it would promote equity and justice for Igbo-speaking people in Delta State.
The communique underscored that Igbo dialects remain “close, mutually intelligible, and facilitate smooth interactions,” reinforcing the cultural and political bonds that drive the push for regional unity.
Analysts say the renewed demand reflects longstanding concerns over federal neglect, economic exclusion, and geopolitical fragmentation in the South-East. The call also comes as debates on restructuring, state creation, and equitable distribution of federal resources continue to shape Nigeria’s national politics.
