Senate insists SEDC must operate from South-East, not Abuja

The Senate, through its Committee on the South-East Development Commission (SEDC), on Monday directed the management of the commission to operate from the South-East, insisting that it must be physically present in the region it was established to serve.

Orji Kalu (Abia North), the committee chairman, gave the directive during an oversight visit to projects being executed by the commission in Enugu State.

Kalu, however, expressed satisfaction with the progress of work on the commission’s headquarters in Enugu, describing the building as an impressive edifice and the level of progress recorded as encouraging.

He said committee members observed noticeable improvements compared with the situation during their earlier engagements with the commission but urged the management to sustain the pace of work ahead of the committee’s next oversight visit in December.

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“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.

“We will be here in December to see the progress so far. We are happy now that something is going on. We also want them to go to the grassroots to show the South Eastern people that they are on the ground,” he said.

Kalu explained that the lawmakers inspected two facilities: the office currently occupied by the commission and another building provided by the Enugu State Government, which is being completed for the commission’s use.

“Where we were before and now, we are making progress. We were quarrelling about our office being in Abuja. Today, we have seen two offices, one where they are staying and the one they are completing, which the government of Enugu State gave them.

“So, we are very impressed. Once they are back home to do what they are sent to do, nobody has problems with them,” Kalu stated.

The senator reiterated his earlier objection to the commission’s decision to operate from Abuja rather than from the South-East, insisting that its operations must be based in the region it was established to develop.

“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.

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“Our quarrel before was about being in Abuja and not being in Enugu. So that quarrel is over now,” he added.

Beyond establishing its physical presence in Enugu, Kalu urged the commission to extend its activities to communities across the South-East to ensure that its impact was felt at the grassroots.

He stressed that the commission’s responsibilities went beyond maintaining administrative offices, urging its management to demonstrate its presence through projects and interventions that directly benefit people across the region.

Although the SEDC is still relatively new, Kalu said its management must sustain the progress recorded and remain focused on delivering on the mandate for which it was established.